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Jf^nAe^^^li2iii' "^"Vwi^vc^ d-i^uw (TS^n^^n^) 



THE 



LIFE OF ELISHA. 



BY THE AUTHOR OF " THE LIFE OF ELIJAH." 



WRITTEN FOR THE AMERICAN SUNDAY-SCHOOL UNION, AND 
REVISED BY THE CO^DIITTEE OF PUBLICATION. 



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AMERICAN SUNDAY-SCHOOL UNION, 

NO. 146 CHESTNUT STREET. 



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Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1836, by Paid Becky Jr., 
Treasurer, in trust for the American Sunday-school Union, in the Clerk's Office of 
the District Court of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. 



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PREFACE. 



The writer of this little Bible story, and 
several of a similar character published by 
the American Sunday-school Union, has 
been led to think that children might 
receive more instruction from Scripture 
biographies, if they could see the charac- 
ters described in the midst of the scenes 
in which they were accustomed to appear 
when alive. The eminent men of the 
Bible lived so long ago, — much that is 
related of them seems so strange and 
unusual, when unexplained b}^ a reference 
to the manners and customs of their age, 
that children are in danger of regarding 
them as imaginary persons — inhabitants 
A 2 5 



VI PREFACE. 

of another world. The object of the 
writer has been to represent them as 
living, breathing men ; moving about, and 
acting like other men, according to the 
circumstances of their country and age. 
An attempt has been made to describe the 
scenes in which they took an active part ; 
the people among whom they lived ; and 
to present them in that dress which they 
were accustomed to wear when alive. 
This was a difficult task, and has been 
but imperfectly performed ; but no pains 
have been spared to obtain accurate infor- 
mation respecting the manners, customs, 
and scenery of Palestine, and the sur- 
rounding countries. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

EARLY HISTOKY OF ELISHA, 



Page 



Birth-place of Elisha — His parentage — Elijah 
chooses him for a companion — How they spent 
their time — Two things in which Elisha should 
be imitated — Elisha divides the waters of the 
Jordan 9 

CHAPTER H. 

DESCRIPTION OF JERICHO. 

Jericho — Description of the plain of Jericho — 
Unwholesome and bitter spring of water — 
Elisha casts salt into it, and makes the water 
sweet — Present appearance of this spring — 
Elisha goes to Bethel — Children mock the 
prophet — They are torn in pieces by bears — 
Children should respect good men 21 

CHAPTER m. 

ELISHA GOES WITH THE ARXY AGAINST MOAB. 

Jehoram reigns over Israel — The Moabites revolt 
— Jehoram and Jehoshaphat march against 
them — They are in great want of water — They 
consult Elisha — He foretells a supply of water — 
— Water comes from the wilderness — The 
Moabites overcome, and their country con- 
quered — The king of Moab sacrifices his son . . 35 

7 



O CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER IV. 

ELISHA RESTORES THE SHUNEMITe's SON TO LIFE. 

Page 
The widow and her two sons — She asks aid of 
Elisha — Miracle of the oil — Elisha Uves on 
Mount Carmel — Woman of Shunem — She 
makes a chamber for Elisha — Description of 
it — Elisha's promise to the Shunemite — Her 
son is sick, and dies — She goes to Elisha, at 
Mount Carmel — Mode of traveUing in the east 
— She meets Elisha — Eastern manner of salu- 
tation — Elisha returns with her — He restores 
her son to life 46 

CHAPTER V. 

ELISHA MAKES THE POISONOUS FOOD WHOLESOME. 

Elisha goes to Gilgal — School of the prophets at 
Gilgal — Want of food at the school — Poisonous 
wild gourds — Elisha makes the poisonous food 
wholesome — How the students obtained their 
support — First-fruits — Miracle of the loaves ... 68 

CHAPTER VI. 

ELISHA HEALS NAAMAN THE SYRIAN. 

Syria — Naaman, the Syrian captain — He has the 
leprosy — Description of the leprosy — Lepers 
banished from cities — The captive maid — She 
advises Naaman to go to Elisha — Naaman 
goes to Samaria — He arrives at the house of 
Elisha — How Elisha treats him — Naaman is 
angry — He washes in Jordan, and is healed — 
Several things in which he acted wisely — He 
is grateful for being cured — He offers a present 
to Elisha — The prophet refuses it — Naaman's 
request — Wicked conduct and punishment of 
Gehazi 77 



CONTENTS, 9, 

CHAPTER VII. 

ELISHA MAKES IRON TO SWIM. 

Page 
Elisha goes with his scholars to the Jordan — 
Fords of the Jordan — Young men cut down 
trees for a college — An axe falls into the river — 
Elisha makes iron to swim — Benhadad invades 
Israel — Elisha defeats his purpose — Benhadad 
sends soldiers to take Elisha — Elisha's servant 
alarmed — Chariots and horses of fire surround 
Dothan — The Syrians made blind — Elisha 
leads them to Samaria — Description of Sama- 
ria — The Syrians sent home 107 

CHAPTER VIII. 

ELISHA FORETELLS PLENTY IN SAMARIA. 

The Syrians besiege Samaria — Severe famine — A 
woman eats her own son — Jehoram is angry 
with Elisha — He sends men to kill the prophet 
— Elisha foretells abundance in Samaria — The 
four lepers without the city — They visit the 
Syrian camp — The Syrians are alarmed, and 
flee — The lepers return to the city — The Israel- 
ites gather the spoils, and food becomes plenty 
— Jehoram a wicked king — Another famine — 
Elisha tells the Shunemite to leave the country 
— She goes to Philistia — She returns, and asks 
the king for her land 123 

CHAPTER IX. 

ELISHA GOES TO DAMASCUS. 

Elisha prepares for a journey — Description of 
Gilead and Bashan — Damascus — Description of 
Damascus — Benhadad sends Hazael to Elisha 
— Elisha's address to Hazael — Hazael kills 
Benhadad, and becomes king 142 



10 CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER X. 

ELISHA SENDS A PROPHET TO ANOINT JEHU. 

Page 
Elisha sends a prophet to anoint Jehu — Jehu 
proclaimed king — Jezebel killed, and devoured 
by dogs — Jehu destroys the temple and priests 
of Baal — His son reigns in his stead 152 

CHAPTER XL 

ELISHa's DEATH. 

Nothing said of Elisha for forty-five years — What 
he was probably doing during this time — Elisha 
falls sick — King Joash visits him — Why he came 
to see him — Meaning of symbol — Elisha tells the 
king to take bow and arrows — He foretells vic- 
tories over the Syrians — Elisha dies — Account 
of the death of good men in the Bible — Short 
examples — Of more consequence how we live 
than how we die — Reflections — A dead man 
restored to life by the bones of Elisha — God 
watches over the dust of his people 160 

CHAPTER Xn. 

ELIJAH AND ELISHA COMPAHED. 

Things in which Elijah and Elisha were alike — 
Things in which they were unlike — God suits 
the talents and qualities of his people to their 
duties — Elijah's departure from the world re- 
sembled his life — Elisha's death similar to his life. 179 



THE 

LIFE OF ELISHA. 



CHAPTER I. 

EARLY HISTORY OF ELISHA. 

Birth-place of Elisha — His parentage — Elijah chooses 
him for a companion — How they spent their time — 
Two things in which Elisha should be imitated — 
Elisha divides the waters of the Jordan. 



The city 
of Abel-me- 
holah. was si- 
tuated near 
the foot of 
the moun- 
tains of 
Gilboa, in 
the fruitfal 







Shechem • 



•-.GiiboV 



11 



12 THE LIFE 

country of Manasseh. It was a few 
miles west of the river Jordan, and 
was north-east of Shechem, and 
south-east of Samaria, which were 
the two principal cities in the land 
of Israel. 

This was the city unto which a 
great army of the Midianites fled, 
when Gideon, with his three hun- 
dred men, armed only with trum- 
pets, and lamps hidden in pitchers, 
drove them from the valley, by the 
hill of Moreh. 

More than three thousand years 
after the creation of the world, and 
nine hundred and six years before the 
birth of Jesus Christ, there lived a man 
in Abel-meholah, whose name was 
Elisha. He was the son of Shaphat, 



OF ELISHA. 13 

who, it is supposed, was a rich man. 
But, though Shaphat was rich, he 
had not, like many inconsiderate fa- 
thers, suffered his son to grow up in 
idleness. Ehsha used to cultivate 
his father's fields, in the neighbour- 
hood of Abel-meholah. 

In that country, men were called 
rich who had a great deal of land, 
and many cattle and sheep, even 
though they had not much money. 
The Israelites were not in general a 
trading people. They lived chiefly 
by cultivating the ground, as farm- 
ers do in the present day. Farming 
was then, and is now, justly esteem- 
ed an honourable employment. 

One day, as Elisha was ploughing 

in the fields, with twelve yoke of 
B 



14 THE LIFE 

oxen, the prophet Elijah passed by. 
He came up close to Elisha, and 
threw his mantle upon him. In the 
east, people sometimes show their 
meaning by expressive actions, in- 
stead of explaining it by words. So 
Elisha understood, when the mantle 
was thrown over him, that Elijah 
wished to have him for a companion, 
and a successor in teaching the peo- 
ple. Elisha did not hesitate, or beg 
to be excused. Though his parents 
were dear to him, and the fields of 
Abel-meholah pleasant, he was will- 
ing to leave all, when God sent Eli- 
jah to command him to do so. He 
instantly left the oxen, and ran after 
Elijah, and said to him, '^ Let me, I 
pray thee, kiss my father and my 



OF ELISHA. 16 

mother, and then I will follow thee." 
When Elijah had consented, Elisha 
returned, and took a yoke of oxen, 
and slew them, and boiled their 
flesh, and made a feast for his pa- 
rents and friends : then he arose, 
and went after Elijah, and attended 
upon him. 

Elijah and Elisha spent their time 
in privately instructing the Israel- 
ites, and in visiting and superintend- 
ing the schools of the prophets, or 
the places where young men were 
preparing to become the spiritual 
teachers of the people. 

There are two things in which 
Elisha ought to be imitated by all 
children and young persons. 

One is his readiness to obey the 



IB THE LIFE 

commands of God, though they were 
difficult to obey. He was willing 
immediately to leave his father and 
mother, and the comfort and abun- 
dance in which he had been accus- 
tomed to live, and the pleasant fields 
and vineyards which he had culti- 
vated. He consented to go with 
Elijah, who was a poor man; to 
be dependent upon charity for his 
support; to live upon the coarsest 
food ; and perhaps to lodge frequently 
in the open air, upon the ground. It 
was hard to do this ; but Elisha did 
it cheerfully. This shows that he 
loved God better than his friends, or 
any of his comforts. 

There is another thing in which 
Elisha set a good example to young 



OF ELISHA. 17 

persons. It is in the affection and 
respect which he showed towards 
Ms parents. 

Now, I am sorry to believe that 
any child can be so unfeeling and 
wicked, as to treat his parents with 
disrespect. But I am afraid there 
are many such. I have known some 
children who did not confide in their 
parents, or consult them about any 
of their plans or pursuits. They 
disregarded their advice, and diso- 
beyed their commands. Nay, I have 
even heard of some who had so little 
sense of what is right and becoming, 
as to use unkind and insolent lan- 
guage to a father or a mother. 

How different were the feelings 
and conduct of Elisha ! He remem- 

B 2 



18 THE LIFE 

bered the command of God, *' Ho- 
nour thy father and thy mother." 
He remembered how his parents haJi 
loved and watched over him in in- 
fancy and childhood ; and how care- 
fully they had instructed him, and 
supplied all his wants. He knew 
that it would grieve his father and 
mother to part with him, and he 
would not, though he had grown to 
be a man, leave them, even to be- 
come a prophet of God, till he had 
bade them an affectionate farewell. 
Elisha continued to attend upon 
Elijah for ten years. During that 
time, Ahab was killed in a battle 
with the Syrians ; and Ahaziah his 
son, who reigned after him, died, in 
consequence of a fall from the roof 



OF ELISHA. 19 

of the palace. Jehoram, another son 
of Ahab, was the next king. 

Elijah, one of the best and greatest 
of the prophets, was now to be taken 
up to heaven. Elisha went with 
him over the Jordan, saw him as- 
cend in a fiery chariot, and caught 
his mantle as it fell. Returning, he 
smote the waters of the Jordan with 
the mantle of Elijah, and divided them 
hither and thither, so that he went 
over on dry land.^ On his way to 
Jericho, he met fifty of the sons of 
the prophets, who belonged to the 
school in that city. They had pro- 
bably seen him divide the waters of 



* For a particular narrative of these events, see 
Lite of Elijah, published by the American Sunday- 
school Union, chap. xi. 



20 THE LIFE 

the river, and understood that they 
must now render to him the respect 
and obedience which they had be- 
fore given to Elijah. So they bowed 
themselves to the ground before him. 
They then asked permission to go 
and look for Elijah ; supposing that 
the Spirit of God might, perhaps, 
have cast him upon some mountain, 
or into some valley. Elisha suffered 
them to go, because they insisted 
upon it, though he knew that it 
would be of no use. They sought 
three days for Elijah, but could not 
find him. Then they returned to 
Jericho. 



OF ELISHA. 



21 



CHAPTER II. 

DESCRIPTION OF JERICHO. 

Jericho — Description of the plain of Jericho — Unwhole- 
some and bitter spring of water — Elisha casts salt 
into it, and makes the water sweet — Present appear- 
ance of this spring — Elisha goes to Bethel — Children 
mock the prophet — They are torn in pieces by bears 
— Children should respect good men. 



Bethel* 



The city 
of Jericho, 
where Ehsha 
spent a few 
days after the 
ascension of 
Ehjah, was 
twenty miles 
north-east of 
Jerusalem, and six miles west of 




\% 



22 THE LIFE 

the river Jordan. It was situated 
in the delightful plain of Jericho, 
which extended about ten miles 
along the Jordan, and the northern 
part of the Dead Sea. This plain 
was overhung, on all sides, by bar- 
ren, rugged mountains. The moun- 
tains of Judea stretched out to the 
west and south-west, and far in the 
east rose the tops of Pisgah and 
Nebo. The mountains of Quaran- 
tania, in the west, were without ver- 
dure, and covered with sand, or 
chalky earth. In some places were 
steep cliffs, w^hich it was impossible 
to climb ; in others, the rocks were 
thrown about in such wild confusion, 
that it seemed as though an earth- 
quake had torn and scattered them. 



OF ELLSHA, 23 

The plain of Jericho lay in smiling 
beauty at the foot of these desolated 
mountains. The bright waters of 
the Jordan rolled in graceful wind- 
ings through green and flowery mea- 
dows. Its banks were fringed with 
tamarisks, and oleanders, and wil- 
lows. Many cattle were feeding in 
the pastures, who, when the sun 
rose high in the heavens, would seek 
a shelter from the scorching rays, 
under the sycamore trees; or, per- 
haps, beneath some aged terebinth, 
whose large trunk, and wide spread- 
ing branches, and thick evergreen 
foliage, made it appear like the 
monarch of the forest. The towers 
of the city rose amid gardens of figs, 
pomegranates, citrons, and olives. 



24 THE LIFE 

So many palm trees grew in and 
around it, that it was called the city 
of palms. The inhabitants cultivated, 
with great care, a shrub resembling 
a fir, from which flowed the precious 
balsam of Gilead. This balsam was 
so much valued as a medicine, that 
it was sold for double its weight in 
silver. 

The sheltered valley of Jericho was 
warmer than any part of Palestine. 
The almond tree, one of the earliest 
blooming plants of spring, was co- 
vered with white blossoms several 
days sooner here than on the hills 
of Judea. Soon the plum-tree yield- 
ed its fruit, and the flowers of 
many bulbous plants appeared in the 
gardens and meadows. Swarms of 



OF ELISHA. 25 

wild bees were attracted by their 
fragrance. They formed the honey- 
comb in the hollows of the trees, or 
in the crevices of rocks. The honey 
often flowed down the trunks of 
trees, to the ground ; showing to per- 
sons who were passing by, where 
they might find a supply for them- 
selves and their families. 

The corn sprang up rapidly ; the 
ears ripened in the sun, and the 
earliest harvests in the land were 
reaped in the plain of Jericho. The 
vines were so luxuriant that they 
climbed to the tops of large trees, 
and, following and twisting around 
the branches, decked them with pur- 
ple clusters. Later in the season, 
the heat was so great that it could 



26 THE LIFE ^ 



scarcely be borne. The inhabitants 
of the city then retired to their cool- 
est apartments, or reposed by the 
fountains in their courts. Here the 
scorching rays of the sun were shut 
out, by an awning stretched across 
the court, from roof to roof But 
when the day was past, and the re- 
freshing winds of evening blew, they 
hastened to the tops of their houses, 
which they often made their lodging 
places for the night. 

Notwithstanding the pleasant si- 
tuation of Jericho, the only spring 
of water in the neighbourhood was 
unwholesome and bitter. Wherever 
it flowed, it made the land unfruit- 
ful, and caused the death of those 
who drank it. This was a great 



OF ELISHA. 27 

calamity to the inhabitants. Bad 
water is much more common in the 
east than in America. In this coun- 
try, there are few places where good 
water cannot be obtained in great 
abundance ; and, in many places, 
there are sparkling fountains gush- 
ing out among the hills ; so that we 
are in danger of forgetting their va- 
lue. A journey through the deserts 
of Africa, or Arabia, where travel- 
lers often perish from thirst, and 
where a rich man would some- 
times give all his wealth for a cup 
of cold water, would teach us to be 
more grateful. And if we had been 
in Jericho, where the people, when 
overcome by the excessive heat, 
eould not obtain a drop of sweet 



28 THE LIFE 

water to quench their thirst, I think 
we should have been willing to ex- 
change all the beautiful flowers and 
fine fruits of the city of palms, for 
the deep, cool, refreshing wells of 
our own country. 

The men of Jericho were con- 
vinced, by what they had seen, that 
God had given to Elislia the same 
power of working miracles that Eli- 
jah had while he was upon the 
earth. So some of them came to 
Elisha, and said, '• Behold, I pray 
thee, the situation of the city is plea- 
sant, as my lord seeth ; but the water 
is naught." 

Elisha told them to bring him 
some salt in a new cruse or dish. 
They brought it, and he went out 



OF ELISHA. 29 

to the fountain of Jericho, which 
rises at the base of a low hill, or 
mound, west of the city, and near 
the foot of the mountains of Qua- 
rantania. 

Elisha stood by the spring, and 
cast the salt into it, saying, " Thus 
saith the Lord, I have healed these 
waters; there shall not be from 
thence anymore death;" meaning, 
probably, they shall not any more 
cause death. Immediately the wa- 
ters became sweet and wholesome, 
and they have remained so to this 
day. 

Now, I cannot tell exactly how 
this fountain appeared, almost three 
thousand years ago, when Elisha 
cast salt into it. But persons who 

c2 



30 THE LIFE 

have lately been there, say that it is 
enclosed in a basin thirty feet long, 
and from fifteen to eighteen feet 
broad. This basin is lined, and 
partly paved with hev^n stone. On 
one side of it is an opening, through 
which the water pours out in a 
stream large enough to turn a mill. 
The waters of the fountain are cool, 
sweet, and transparent, and full of 
small fish. Large trees grow on its 
borders, intermingled with bushes 
bearing a kind of apple, about the 
size of a common plum, and of a 
yellowish colour. This fruit, though 
beautiful to the eye, is unpleasant to 
the taste, and said to be poisonous. 
The fountain is spread out like a 
beautiful mirror, under the shade, 



OF ELISHA. 31 

reflecting the trees on its banks, the 
bushes with their golden fruit, and 
the soft rich sky. It is so quiet and 
still, that these shadows scarcely 
seem to tremble, except w^hen a 
breeze stirs the thick boughs. But 
sometimes the smooth waters are 
disturbed by the pelican diving for 
fish, the stork wading in the shallow 
places in search of food, or some 
wandering Arab dipping his pitcher 
into the spring. The stream which 
issued out from the opening in the 
enclosure divided into several rivu- 
lets, that watered the gardens and 
plain of Jericho. How happy were 
the inhabitants when they tasted the 
water, and found that it was no 
longer bitter, nor unwholesome. The 



32 THE LIFE 

fountain has since been called the 
fountain of Elisha. 

Though this was a time of great 
wickedness and idolatry in Israel, I 
trust there were many good men in 
Jericho, who gave thanks to the true 
God for the great kindness he had, 
shown them. 

Elisha left Jericho, and went up 
to Bethel. When he came near to 
the city, the road led by the side of 
a wood. Perhaps he was then on 
the mountain which is east of Beth- 
el. As he was passing quietly along, 
a great many children came out of 
the city, and began to mock him, 
saying, " Go up, thou bald head; go 
up, thou bald head." Elisha turned 



OF ELISHA, 33 

back, and looked on them, and 
cursed them in the name of the 
Lord. I suppose Elisha was not 
angry at their treatment of him, but 
that God commanded him to do so, 
to teach other children not to be so 
wicked. These children meant to 
insult the prophet. They lived in 
Bethel, where the golden calf was 
worshipped. They had been trained 
up in idolatry, and probably hated 
Elisha because he was a prophet of 
God. Perhaps they had heard that 
Elijah had gone up into heaven, and 
they scornfully advised Elisha to 
follow him. It IS very wrong to 
ridicule others on account of any 
thing in their appearance that we do 
not like. Tt is much worse to ridi- 



34 THE LIFE 

cule them on account of their piety. 
When children do this, it shows that 
they are hardened in sin, and that 
they have been very badly brought 
up. God determined to punish these 
wicked children and their parents. 
He sent two bears out of the woods, 
and they tore in pieces forty-two of 
the children. This shows that he is 
very angry with those who despise 
and mock his faithful servants. 

Children should learn, from this 
story, to fear God and to respect 
good men. When they are tempted 
to despise aged, or poor, or pious per- 
sons, let them remember the dread- 
ful end of the forty-two children in 
the wood of Bethel. 



OF ELISHA. 35 



CHAPTER III. 

ELISHA GOES WITH THE ARMY AGAINST 
MOAB. 

Jehoram reigns over Israel — The Moabites revolt — Je- 
horam and Jehoshaphat march against them — They 
are in great want of water — They consult Elisha — 
He foretells a supply of water — Water comes from 
the wilderness — The Moabites overcome, and their 
country conquered — The king of Moab sacrifices his 
son. 

Jehoram, the king of Israel, was 
a wicked man. He was not quite so 
bad as his father and mother ; for he 
put away, for a time, the image of 
Baal. But he did not love God, or 
worship him aright. He suffered 
the people to sacrifice to the golden 
calves which Jeroboam had set up. 
Sometimes, when a king or a general 



36 THE LIFE 

conquers a country, he will not con- 
sent to withdraw his armies, or make 
peace, till the king or governors of 
the country he has conquered, pro- 
mise to pay him a certain sum of 
money every year. This is called 
paying tribute. For one country to 
pay tribute to another is an acknow- 
ledgment of inferiority. King David 
conquered the Moabites, and the 
king of Moab had ever since paid 
tribute to the king of Israel, to the 
amovmt of one hundred thousand 
lambs and one hundred thousand 
rams, with the wool. After the 
death of Ahab, the king of Moab 
rebelled against the king of Israel, 
and refused to pay this tribute. 
Jehoram gathered together his 



OF ELISHA. 



37 



armies to go and fight against the 
king of Moab. He sent and requested 
Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, to help 
him. Jehoshaphat consented; pro- 
bably because his son had married 
the sister of Jehoram. 
The 




round the southern part of the Dead 
sea, where they were joined by the 
king of Edom, who was tributary 
to the king of Judah. They then 

D 



38 THE LIFE 

went northward, through the desert 
of Edom, towards Moab. This was 
a journey of seven days, through a 
terrible wilderness, and there was 
no water for the men or cattle. And 
the king of Israel said, " Alas ! that 
the Lord hath called these three 
kinjjs toQjether, to deliver them into 
the hand of the king of Moab !" Tb> 
horam had neglected to ask direction 
of God, before he went on this dan- 
gerous journey, though he might 
easily have done it. Yet he now 
complained that God had brought 
him into difficulty. 

Jehoshaphat, who was a pious 
king, knew what it was right to do. 
He said, " Is there not here a pro- 
phet of the Lord, that we may in- 



OF ELISHA. 39 

quire of the Lord by him ? And 
one of the king of Israel's servants 
informed him that EKsha, who nsed 
to pour water on the hands of Eh- 
jah, had come along with the army. 
And Jehoshaphat said, " The word 
of the Lord is with him.'' So the 
king of Israel, and the king of Judah, 
and the king of Edom, went to that 
part of the camp where Elisha was. 
Elisha was indignant when he 
saw the wicked king Jehoram, who, 
he knew, would not have sought 
help from God, if he had not been 
in great distress. " And he said to 
the king of Israel, What have I to 
do with thee ? Get thee to the pro- 
phets of thy father and the prophets 
of thy mother. And the king of 



40 THE LIFE 

Israel said unto him, Nay, for the 
Lord hath called these three kings 
together, to deliver them into the 
hand of Moab. And Elisha said, 
As the Lord of hosts liveth, before 
whom I stand, surely were it not that 
I regard the presence of Jehosha- 
phat, the king of Judah, I would not 
look towards thee, nor see thee." 

Elisha was much disturbed by see- 
ing Jehoram, and by recollecting all 
the evil that had been done by the 
family of Ahab. He sent for a min- 
strel to play before him, that his mind 
might be composed by sweet strains 
of music, and prepared to receive 
a message from God to the three 
kings. 

While the minstrel played, the 



OF ELISHA. 41 

Spirit of God came over Elisha, and 
taught him what he should say. 
" And he said, Thus saith the Lord, 
Make this valley full of ditches. 
For thus saith the Lord, Ye shall 
not see wind, neither shall ye see 
rain ; yet that valley shall be filled 
with water, that ye may drink, both 
ye, and your cattle, and your beasts. 
And this is but a light thing in the 
sight of the Lord : he will deliver 
the Moabites also into your hand. 
And ye shall smite every fenced city, 
and every choice city, and shall fell 
every good tree, and stop all wells 
of water, and mar every good piece 
of land w^ith stones." 

I suppose, after Elisha had said 
this, the soldiers of the army were 

D 2 



42 THE LIFE 

employed in digging ditches, as 
God had commanded. And the next 
morning at sunrise, just at the hour 
when the morning sacrifice was 
offered at the temple, at Jerusalem, 
there came water from the south ; so 
that the trenches and all the deep 
places in the valley were filled with 
water, and the people drank as much 
as they w^ished. In the mean time, the 
Moabites had heard that three armies 
had come against them; and they 
gathered all that were able to put on 
armour, and encamped on the border 
of their country. They rose up early 
in the morning, to prepare for battle, 
and when they saw the water in the 
A^alley, w^hich was commonly dry, 
the sun was shining across it in such 



OF ELISHA, 43 

a manner, that it looked like blood. 
Perhaps the soil was of a reddish 
colour, which helped to deceive the 
Moabites. They said to each other, 
*'This is blood; the three armies 
have surely quarrelled and slain 
each other ; now, let us go and take 
the goods from their camp." 

They rushed hastily forward to rob 
the camp of their enemies ; and the 
Israelites and their allies waited till 
they came near. Then they attacked 
the Moabites, who were in such con- 
fusion that they could not defend 
themselves. Many of them were 
killed, and the rest fled to their own 
country. They shut themselves up 
within the brick walls of Kirhare- 
seth on the south of the river Arnon. 



44 THE LIFE 

This was their capital city, and is 
now called Kerek. 

This city is on high ground, and 
is seen from Jerusalem. The allied 
armies passed over the rich and de- 
lightful country of Moab, destroying 
the cities, filling up the wells, cut- 
ting down the trees, and scattering 
stones over the fields. At last the 
king of Moab, having in vain at- 
tempted to break through the camp 
of the Edomites, grew desperate. 
He brought out his eldest son, who 
was heir to his crown, and, in sight 
of the people, offered him for a burnt- 
offering upon the wall of Kirhare- 
seth. This dreadful act filled every 
body with horror, and the Israel- 
ites and their allies retired to their 



OF ELISHA. 45 

homes. It was a custom among 
heathen nations, to offer human sa- 
crifices to their gods, in times of 
great trouble. Some even offered 
their own children. This sacrifice 
was probably offered to Chemosh, 
which was the national idol of the 
Moabites. 



46 THE LIFE 



CHAPTER IV. 



ELISHA RESTORES THE SHUNAMITE's SON 
TO LIFE. 



The widow and her two sons — She asks aid of Elisha — 
Miracle of the oil — Elisha lives on Mount Carmel — 
Woman of Shunem — She makes a chamber for 
Elisha — Description of it — Elisha*s promise to the 
Shunamite — Her son is sick, and dies — She goes to 
Elisha at Mount Carmel — Mode of travelling in the 
east — She meets Elisha — Eastern manner of saluta- 
tion — Elisha returns with her — He restores her son 
to life. 

One of the prophets died, and left 
his wife a widovf , and his two sons 
fatherless. He was poor ; for it was 
not the business of the prophets to 
lay up riches for themselves. Beside 
this, he owed a man a sum of money. 
The widow could not pay the debt. 



OF ELISHA. 47 

The creditor was very cruel, and 
threatened to seize upon her sons 
and sell them for slaves. She was 
much distressed. As Elisha was the 
friend and guardian of all the pro- 
phets, she went and made her com- 
plaint to him. And Elisha said unto 
her, ^'What shall I do for thee?" 
And she said, *^ Thy handmaid hath 
not any thing in the house save a 
pot of oil." This was olive oil. 
Then he said, ^' Go borrow thee ves- 
sels abroad of all thy neighbours, 
even empty vessels; borrow not a 
few. And when thou art come in, 
thou shalt shut the door upon thee 
and upon thy sons, and shalt pour 
out into all those vessels, and thou 
shalt set aside that which is full." 



48 THE LIFE 

So she left him, and borrowed many 
vessels of her neighbours ; then she 
went with her sons into the house, 
and shut the door. Her sons brought 




her the jars, and she began to pour 
out. As she poured out, God made 
the oil to increase, so that she filled 
all the vessels. The woman would 
not use the oil till she had asked di- 
rection of Elisha. He told her to 
sell the oil, and pay the debt with 



OF ELISHA. 4d 

part of the money that she would 
obtain for it. The remaining part 
she might use for the support of her- 
self and her children. It was right 
that she should be honest, and pay- 
all that she owed, before she thought 
of her own wants. 

The widow's heart must have been 
fall of joy and gratitude to God, who 
had wrought this miracle for her re- 
lief. There was now no more fear 
that her sons would be sold for 
slaves. They would remain with 
her, to comfort her in her sorrow for 
the loss of her husband. She would 
not be left to loneliness and grief, 
and they would not be made to feel 
the evils of bondage. 



50 



THE LIFE 




About this 
time Elisha 
lived at 

Mouiit Car- 
mel; but he 
used often 
to visit the 
schools of the 
prophets, to 
assist in instructing the young men, 
and in the management of their 
affairs. When upon these journeys, 
he sometimes passed through the 
city of Shunem, which was in the 
tribe of Issachar, north of Samaria 
There was a woman of wealth and 
consequence residing in this city, 
who was very pious. She loved 
Elisha because he was a prophet of 



OF ELISHA. 51 

God ; and when he came that way, 
she urged him to stop and eat bread. 
After this, whenever he passed 
through Shunem, he went to her 
house to refresh himself At last, 
she said to her husband, ''Behold, 
now, I perceive that this is a holy 
man of God, which passeth by us 
continually. Let us make a little 
chamber, I pray thee, on the v/all ; 
and let us set for him there a bed, 
and a table, and a stool, and a can- 
dlestick : and it shall be, when he 
cometh to us, that he shall turn in 
thither." 

He consented; and the cham- 
ber was accordingly built and fur- 
nished. It was probably a room 
jutting out from the upper story 



52 



THE LIFE 



into the court, over the porch, or 
entrance to the court. These rooms 
are common in eastern countries. 
They are called oleahs ; and there is 




usually a private staircase leading to 
them from the porch. If the Shu- 
nemite's chamber was built in this 
way, Elisha could go to it and leave 
it without entering the house, or 
disturbing the family, which would 
be very convenient. Noav^ as Elisha 



OF ELISHA. 63 

was the most important man among 
the ministers or prophets of Israel, 
it may be worth our while to stop a 
moment, and notice the furniture of 
his chamber. His kind hostess was 
able to furnish it as she thought 
proper ; and she undoubtedly ob- 
tained such things as she supposed 
the prophet would like. And what 
were they ? A bed, or divan, which 
you know is a sort of low, broad 
sofa ; a table ; a stool, and a candle- 
stick : just w^hat was necessary, and 
nothing more. I think we should 
learn from this to be satisfied with 
plain furniture and simple accom- 
modations. 

The next time Elisha came to 
Sliunem, he was shown into his 

E 2 



54 THE LIFE 

chamber, and he slept there. He 
was gratefal to the woman for her 
kindness, and wished to reward her. 
And he said to Gehazi, his servant, 
'' Call this Shunemite." And when 
he had called her, she stood before 
him. And he said unto him, " Say 
now unto her, Behold, thou hast 
been careful for us with all this 
care ; what is to be done for thee ? 
Wouldst thou be spolcen for to the 
king, or to the captain of the host?'' 
And she answered, '' I dw^ell among 
mine own people." By this expres- 
sion, she probably meant that she 
dwelt safely and happily among 
her own friends and relatives, and 
needed nothing from the king or 
his officers. She then withdrew. 



OF ELISHA, 65 

k 

Elisha asked Gehazi what could 
be done for her. Gehazi informed 
him that she had no child. Then 
Ehsha told him to call her again. 
And when he called her, she stood 
in the door. Elisha said to her, 
that, about that time the next year, 
God would give her a son. This 
promise was fulfilled at the time 
mentioned by the prophet. 

When the child was about five 
years old, he went out one morning 
to his father, who was in the field 
with the reapers. While lie amused 
himself by seeing the men cut down 
and bind up the grain, and perhaps 
by listening to their pleasant songs, 
as they laboured, he began to feel 
unwell. He said to his father, " My 



56 THE LIFE 

head, my head !" and his father said 
to a lad who stood by, '^ Carry him 
to his mother." It is supposed that 
he was seized with an inflammation 
of the brain, owing to the extreme 
heat of the sun. This disease is 
common in warm countries, and is 
called coup de soleil, or stroke of the 
sun. The lad brought the child to 
his mother. She took him in her 
arms, and held him till noon, when 
he died. She carried the lifeless 
body of her little boy up to the 
chamber of the prophet, and laid it 
on his bed. She then called to her 
husband, and said, " Send me, I pray 
thee, one of the young men, and one 
of the asses, that I may run to the 
man of God, and come again." And 



OF ELISHA, 57 

he said, ^' Wherefore wilt thou go to 
him to-day ? it is neither new moon 
nor sabbath/' I suppose it was cus- 
tomary for serious people to visit 
Elisha and the other prophets, on 
sabbath days, and at the festival of 
the new moon, to receive instruction. 
She answered, " It shall be well to 
go." As soon as an ass could be sad- 
dled, she set out ; telling the servant 
who attended her to go forward as 
fast as possible. The asses of west- 
ern Europe, and those which are 
used in this country, are heavy, dull 
animals; but in the countries east 
of the Mediterranean, they are lively 
and handsome, like a small horse, 
and are frequently rode upon by 
people of rank, especially by ladies. 



58 THE LIFE 

The woman of Shunem rode 
about thirty miles to Mount Carmel. 

Ehsha saw her at a distance, and 
said to his servant Gehazi, ''Be- 
hold, yonder is that Shunemite. 
Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, 
and say unto her, Is it well with 
thee ? Is it well with thy husband ? 
Is it well with the child ? And she 
answered, ''It is well." Though 
she was greatly afflicted at the death 
of her only child, she said, " It is 
WELL ;" for she knew that her hea- 
venly Father had done what was 
right. 

When she came to the man of 
God, she knelt or prostrated her- 
self before him, and caught him by 
the feet. Gehazi came near to thrust 



OF ELISHA. 59 

her away. And Elisha said, '' Let 
her alone, for her soul is filled with 
bitter sorrow, and the Lord hath hid 
it from me, and hath not told me." 
As soon as she could speak, she said, 
" Did I desire a son of my lord ? Did 
I not say. Do not deceive me?" 

I suppose the meaning of this was, 
that as she had not impatiently de- 
sired this child, but Elisha had 
promised it to her as a great bless- 
ing, she could not believe that God 
had given it to her in mockery, to 
remove it so soon, and thus to make 
her far more unhappy than she was 
before. She wished, therefore, that 
Elisha would pray that she might 
be in some way relieved from her 
distress. 



60 THE LIFE 

Then he said to Gehazi, " Gird 
up thy loins, and take my staff in 
thy hand, and go thy way : if thou 
meet any man, salute him not ; and 
if any salute thee, answer him not 
again: and lay my staff upon the 
face of the child." 

The long flowing outer garment 
which the Israelites wore was incon- 
venient for walking, when it hung 
loosely from the shoulders. They 
used, when preparing for a journey, 
or a long walk, to fasten it around 
them with a girdle. In that country, 
the men often took their journeys on 
foot. It was customary, therefore, 
for every man to carry a staff to lean 
upon when he was weary. 

Elisha's command to Gehazi, to 



OF ELISHA. 61 

salute no man, and not even to an- 
swer any salutation, appears very 
strange to us ; but that is because 
our customs are so diflferent from 
those of people in the east. Now, 
I will illustrate, or show by an 
example, what I mean. Suppose 
a friend was very ill, and you 
were going, in great haste, to a 
neighbouring town, to call a physi- 
cian. And suppose, that whenever 
you met an acquaintance, it was 
necessary for you to stop, and, after 
saying very formally, '' Peace be 
with you," bowing, at the same 
time, with your hand upon the left 
breast, to clasp his hand, raise it to- 
wards your lips, then withdraw your 
hand, kiss it, and lay it upon your 



62 THE LIFE 

forehead ; then to touch his cheek 
with yours ; then inquire about his 
health, give thanks that you are per- 
mitted once more to see him, and 
pray that he may enjoy every kind 
of prosperity. Suppose that polite- 
ness required you to repeat these 
ceremonies, again and again, in a 
very animated and earnest and so- 
lemn manner. If you met a supe- 
rior, suppose it w^as necessary to 
prostrate yourself, kiss the hem of 
his garment, and lay it on your fore- 
head; — I think you would despair 
of reaching the end of your jour- 
ney in season. Yet these are the 
modes of salutation in the east. 
This is the reason why the Hebrews, 
when they were sent upon errands 



OF ELISHA. 63 

that required speed, were told to sa- 
lute no man by the way. When a per- 
son refused to salute another, it was 
understood that he was in haste, and 
he was not considered impolite. 

I suppose that Elisha hoped God 
would hear his prayers, and restore 
the child to life, when Gehazi laid 
the staff upon his face. But the 
mother of the child was not satisfied. 
She would not leave the prophet, 
but urged him to go with her. She 
knew that if any human being could 
help her, it must be Elisha. He could 
not deny her request; and arose, and 
accompanied her to Shunem. 

On their way they met Ge- 
hazi, who told Elisha that he had 
obeyed his command, and laid the 



G4 THE LIFE 

staff upon the child's face, but that 
he did not awake, or show any signs 
of life. 

Elisha arrived at the house where 
he had so often been hospitably en- 
tertained. He went into his cham- 
ber; and there the child lay, stiff 
and cold, upon his bed. This was 
a sorrowful sight to the prophet. 
Elisha had undoubtedly often seen 
the happy countenance of this little 
boy, and heard his cheerful voice, 
while he was playing in the court or 
garden of his father's house. Now, 
that house was made desolate by his 
death ; his mother's heart was full 
of grief, and many of his father's 
hopes were destroyed. 

Elisha shut the door, and in that 



OF ELISHA. 65 

lonely chamber, by the side of the 
lifeless body of the little boy, he 
prayed earnestly unto God. He did 
not expect to raise the child to life 
himself, but he hoped that God 
would do it, in answer to his prayers. 
And he lay upon the child, and put 
his mouth upon his mouth, and his 
eyes upon his eyes, and his hands 
upon his hands: and he stretched 
himself upon the child; and soon 
the flesh of the child became warm. 
Then he went to some other part of 
the house ; perhaps on the roof, or^ 
in the cloisters around the court; 
and walked to and fro, probably 
praying all the time. After a little 
while, he went up again, and 

f2 



66 



THE LIFE 



stretched himself upon the child. 
The warmth of his little body 
increased ; the blood began to flow ; 
the breath returned; he sneezed, 
and opened his eyes. Thus God 
caused the child to be restored 
to life. And Elisha told Gehazi 
to call the mother of the little 
boy. She came in, and saw her 




OF ELISHA. 67 

child alive! Elisha said, ''Take 
up thy son." She fell at his feet 
in wonder and thankfulness, and 
then took up her son and carried 
him out. 



fSif 



THE LIFE 



CHAPTER V. 

ELISHA MAKES THE POISONOUS FOOD 
WHOLESOME. 

Elisha goes to Gilgal — School of the prophets at Gil- 
gal — Want of food at the school — Poisonous wild 
gourds — Elisha makes the poisonous food wholesome 
— How the students obtained their support — First- 
fruits — Miracle of the loaves. 



After this, 
Elisha went 
to Gilgal to vi- 
sit the school 
of the pro- 
phets. Gilgal 
was the place 
to which the 
Israelites first 
came, when they crossed over the 



JerasalemQ 




OF ELISHA. 69 

Jordan, and entered the land of Ca- 
naan. Here was the monument of 
twelve stones which Joshua took 
from the midst of the Jordan, and 
caused to be set up, as a memorial 
that the waters of the river had been 
divided, and that the Israelites pass- 
ed over on dry land. It was a place 
where sacrifices were frequently 
offered, and other religious services 
performed ; and where prophets and 
good men had dwelt in former days. 
It was one of the places where 
courts were held, when Samuel was 
judge of Israel. It was a city in 
which it was considered proper to 
attend to the business of the nation ; 
and, when Saul was .chosen king, 
sacrifices were offered at Gilgal, and 



70 THE LIFE 

he was crowned there. The elders 
of Judah came thither to meet king 
David, and conduct him to Jerusa- 
lem, when he returned, after having 
been driven out by Absalom. 

While Elisha was staying at the 
school of the prophets, they found it 
difficult to obtain food for the stu- 
' dents, because there was a famine 
in the land. In seasons when the 
early and latter rains were not sent 
in abundance, the wheat and barley 
did not grow, and the fruits did not 
ripen. And, sometimes, when there 
was rain enough, a multitude of 
locusts and other insects would come, 
and eat up the tender plants, and | 
destroy every green thing. I do not 



OF ELISHA. 71 

know what caused the famine, at 
this time ; but it was probably just 
before the barley-harvest, and the 
grain of former years was exhausted. 
Elisha told his servant to set on 
the great pot, and prepare some pot- 
tage for the sons of the prophets. 
This seems to have been a kind of 
vegetable soup. One of the young 
men went out into the field to gather 
herbs to put into it. He found a 
wild vine loaded with gourds, which 
looked as if they might be very good. 
He plucked as many of them from 
the vine as he could carry in the 
folds of his mantle, and went and 
emptied them into the pot. These 
gourds were not proper to be eaten, 
though the young man did not know 



79 THE LIFE 

it. They are supposed to have been 
the colocynth, which grows on a 
vine somewhat resembHng that of a 
cucumber. The gourds, when ripe, 
are of the size, and colour, and shape 
of an orange; but they are extremely 
bitter, and quite poisonous. 

When the pottage was sufficiently 
boiled, the servant poured it out into 
a dish, and the young men sat down 
to eat. As they were eating, they 
discovered, by the disagreeable taste 
of the food, that some hurtful plants 
must be mingled with it. They 
cried out to Elisha, '' Oh, thou man 
of God, there is death (or poison, 
that will cause death) in the pot." 
And they could not eat it. But 
Elisha said, *^ Then bring meal." 



OF ELISHA. 73 

And he cast it into the pot ; and he 
said, '^ Pour out for the people, that 
they may eat." This was imme- 
diately done. They began to eat, 
and found the food healthful and 
pleasant, because God had enabled 
Elisha to take away from it what- 
ever was poisonous. The young 
prophets seem to have been very 
well satisfied with a dinner of wild 
herbs, boiled in water, after the poi- 
sonous qualities were removed. I 
think they could not have been so 
luxurious as many young persons 
are in our days.. 

While these young men were 
engaged in study, they could not 
always support themselves, though 

they probably devoted many hours 
G 



74 THE LIFE 

to labour. Pious people, in different 
parts of the land, used sometimes to 
send them such articles as they 
needed. While the priests and Le- 
vites lived in the cities of Israel, the 
people used to give them the first- 
fruits that were gathered, and some 
of the first barley and wheat that 
was reaped. This was done because 
God had not given the priests and 
Levites any land, when the country 
was divided among the tribes, but 
had commanded their brethren to 
support them. Now that the priests 
and Levites had gone to the land of 
Judah, to worship at the temple, 
those Israelites that wished to do 
right, gave their first-fruits to the 
prophets, who were generally poor, 



OF ELISHA. 75 

and who had taken the places of the 
priests, as teachers of the people. A 
man came from Baal-shalisha, which 
is in the south part of the plain of 
Sharon. He brought Elisha twenty 
loaves of bread, made of the first- 
fruits of his barley, and a quantity 
of corn, or barley, in the ear, to be 
parched or roasted. The Israelites 
were fond of eating it in that way. 

This is the reason why I think 
that the famine w^as in March, 
just before harvest. The man from 
Baal-shalisha brought some of the 
first of his barley to Elisha the pro- 
phet ; and barley was the earliest 
grain that was reaped in Palestine. 
Elisha told his servant to place the 



76 THE LIFE 

bread and ears of corn on the table, 
for the young men and all the other 
people who were then at the school. 
His servant was surprised, and said, 
" What ! should I set this before an 
hundred men ?" The loaves of bread 
which were made in that country 
were small; more like cakes, orroUs, 
than like our loaves. The servant 
was sure that there was not enough. 
But Elisha said again, " Give the 
people, that they may eat : for thus 
saith the Lord, They shall eat and 
shall leave thereof" He set it 
before the people: they ate, and 
were satisfied, and there was some 
left. 



OF ELISHA. 



77 



CHAPTER VI. 

ELISHA HEALS NAAMAN THE SYRIAN. 

Syria — Naaman, the Syrian captain — He has the 
leprosy — Description of the leprosy — Lepers han- 
ished from cities — The captive maid^ — She advises 
Naaman to go to Elisha — Naaman goes to Sama- 
ria — He arrives at the house of Elisha — How 
Elisha treats him — Naaman is angry — He washes 
in Jordan, and is healed — Several things in which 
he acted wisely — He is grateful for being cured — 
He offers a present to Elisha — The prophet refuses 
it — Naaman's request — Wicked conduct and punish- 
ment of Gehazi. 



Syria was 
a country 
which lay 
north - east 
of Palestine, 
and east of 
Mount Leba- 
non. Benha- 




G 2 



78 THE LIFE 

dad, king of Syria, reigned in Da- 
mascus, the capital of his kingdom. 
This is now one of the oldest cities 
in the world. It is the place from 
which formerly came the Damascene 
plum, Damask roses, and Damask 
silks. 

The commander-in-chief over the 
armies of Syria was called Naaman. 
He was much esteemed and honour- 
ed by his king, because he was a 
brave man and a skilful general, 
and because he had been helped by 
God to gain great victories. But he 
was afflicted by a distressing disease 
called leprosy. 

The leprosy is not known among 
us, but it is common in Africa, and 
Asia, and other warm countries. 



OF ELISHA. 79 

People who have this disorder live 
many years, but it makes them very 
uncomfortable and very disagreeable 
to others. It shows itself upon the 
skin, by small swellings or scales 
that are usually white, but some- 
times of a dark colour. These scaly 
spots increase slowly, till at last the 
body is covered by them, and the 
whole skin is destroyed. The sense 
of touch is lost, and ulcers appear in 
different parts of the head and face. 
The voice becomes hoarse ; the eyes 
are red and inflamed ; they project 
out from the head, and do not move 
easily. The hair turns grey, and 
comes out, the joints separate, the 
nails fall from the fingers, and some- 
times the fingers ttiemselves decay 



80 THE LIFE 

and drop off. Yet the leper eats and 
drinks as much as others. Though 
his pain is not severe, his mind 
is filled with sad and desponding 
thoughts, and he becomes weary of 
life. This is an hereditary disease ; 
which means, that when a man has 
it, his children will generally have 
it, and perhaps his grand-children 
also. 

The leprosy is infectious, like the 
small-pox ; and, in order to keep it 
from spreading, the law of Moses 
commanded that all lepers among 
the Israelites should be banished 
from the cities, and live in soli- 
tary places, by themselves. When 
strangers approached their melan- 
choly dwellings, the lepers were 



OF ELISHA.. 81 

obliged to give them warning of 
their danger, by crying out, "Un- 
clean, unclean." There was no such 
law in Syria, and Naanian continued 
to be the chief officer and favourite 
of the kinof, though he was afflicted 
with leprosy. But he suffered much 
from the disease, and it must have 
been unpleasant for others to come 
near him. 

Notwithstanding all his honours, 
Naaman must have been very un- 
happy, for he knew that no medicine 
could cure him, and that he should 
grow worse and worse. 

During one of the wars between 
the Syrians and the Israelites, some 
companies of Syrian soldiers went 



82 THE LIPE 

into the land of Israel, to disturb the 
inhabitants and rob them of their 
property. They probably killed some 
persons, and took as much of the 
corn, and wine, and fruit, as they 
could carry away ; and perhaps they 
drove before them, to their own 
country, some of the cattle of the 
Israelites. And what was worse, 
they seized upon a little Hebrew 
girl, whom they found without a 
protector, and carried her away 
from her parents and friends, to a 
strange country. Such things were 
done very frequently at that time; 
and they are now done by savage 
nations, and by those who are only 
partly civilized ; but it is very wrong 
to do so. This little girl was given 



OF ELISHA. 83 

to Naaman, the general, and she 
waited on his wife. Naaman seems 
to have treated her kindly, which 
was his duty; and she understood 
at least one of the duties of a servant, 
for she took an affectionate interest 
in her master and his family. She 
had heard, in her own country, of 
Elisha ; perhaps she had seen him. 
She told her mistress that she earn- 
estly wished her master would go 
to the prophet who was in Samaria, 
for she was quite sure he would heal 
his leprosy. Some person told Naa- 
man what the little maid had said, 
and he probably informed Benha- 
dad, his king. The king was very 
anxious to have Naaman cured ; and 



84 THE LIFE ' 

he offered to write a letter to the 
king of Israel. I suppose he thought 
that was proper, as Elisha was a 
subject of the king of Israel. Ben- 
hadad knew but little about the 
prophets of the true God ; and per- 
haps he supposed that Elisha w^ould 
perform miracles at the command 
of his king. 

The king of Syria wrote the let- 
ter, and Naaman left Damascus in 
his chariot, to go to Samaria. Naa- 
man was attended by his servants, 
and carried with him a great quan- 
tity of silver and gold, to reward the 
prophet, in case he should cure him. 
When Naaman arrived at Samaria, 
he went to the palace of king Jeho- 



OF ELISHA. 85 

ram, and gave him the letter of 
Benhadad. Here is a copy of the 
letter : 

LETTER PROM BENHADAD TO JEHORAM. 

" Now, when this letter is come 
unto thee, behold, I have therewith 
sent Naaman, my servant, to thee, 
that thou mayest recover him of his 
leprosy." 

The king of Israel did not know 

what the king of Syria could mean 

by writing him such a letter. He 

rent his clothes, as people were 

accustomed to do when they were 

in distress, or astonishment, and 

said, '^Am I God, to kill and to 

make alive, that this man doth send 
H 



66 THE LIFE 

unto me to recover a man of his 
leprosy? Wherefore, consider, I 
pray you, and see how he seeketh 
a quarrel against me." 

Elisha seems, at this time, to have 
lived in Samaria. He heard of the 
great Syrian general who had come 
to king Jehoram to be cured of his 
leprosy, and that the king was much 
disturbed by the request; for the 
news of what was done at the palace 
was quickly circulated throughout 
the city. Elisha sent a messenger 
to the king, saying, ^^ Wherefore 
hast thou rent thy clothes? Let 
him come now to me, and he shall 
know that there is a prophet in 
Israel." So Naaman went with his 
horses and vn^th his chariot, and 



OF ELISHA, 87 

stood at the door of the house of 
Elisha. — [^See fro7itispiece.'] 

EHsha did not go out to see Naa- 
man, though he was such a great 
man, and had come in such pomp to 
visit him . Instead of going out him- 
self, he sent a messenger to him, say- 
ing, '' Go and wash in Jordan seven 
times, and thy flesh shall come again 
to thee, and thou shalt be clean !" 

Naaman thought the prophet did 
not treat him with sufficient re- 
spect. He was very angry, and 
said, '' Behold, I thought he would 
surely come out to me, and stand, 
and call on the name of the Lord 
his God, and strike his hand over 
the place, and recover the leper. Are 
not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of 



88 THE LIFE 

Damascus, better than all the waters 
of Israel ? May I not wash in them, 
and be clean V So he turned, and 
went away in a rage. 

Naaman was proud. He thought 
Elisha should have used a great 
deal of form and ceremony, in 
curing a man of so much conse- 
quence as himself. He did not like 
so simple a remedy as washing in 
Jordan. If Naaman had continued 
in Ihis state of mind, and had re- 
turned home without following the 
directions of Elisha, he would pro- 
bably have been a leper as long as 
he lived. But his servants were 
much wiser than himself. They 
came near, and said to him, in a 
respectful manner, '' My father, if 



OF ELISHA. 89 

the prophet had bid thee do some 
great thing, wouldest thou not have 
done it ? How much rather, then, 
when he said to thee, Wash, and be 
clean?" They knew that their mas- 
ter would have been willing to take 
the most disagreeable medicines, or 
submit to the most painful operation, 
or to pay any sum of money, how- 
ever large, if he might be cured of 
his disorder. How much easier was 
it to wash in the river Jordan ! 

Naaman was convinced, by the 
reasoning of his servants, that he had 
acted foolishly. He went and dipped 
himself seven times in the Jordan ; 
and his flesh, which was before dis- 
eased and decayed, became sound 
and healthful, like the flesh of a 

h2 



90 THE LIFE 

little child. He felt the blood flow 
more freely in his veins, and life 
and vigour returned to his limbs. He 
was entirely cured of his leprosy. 

Naaman was a worshipper of 
idols. He had not studied the Bible. 
He was ignorant of the true God, 
who made him and kept him alive. 
But in several things he acted more 
wisely than some do who have more 
knowledge of what is right. 

First; he was willing to take 
advice. Naaman was the greatest 
man, except one, in the kingdom of 
Syria. He lived in a palace, in the 
midst of wealth and splendour. He 
was often consulted by the king. 
He was treated with much respect 
by officers, and soldiers, and states- 



OF ELISHA. 91 

meiij and by all the people of Syria. 
The Hebrew maid was apparently 
a person of very little importance. 
She was only a child, a captive, and 
a servant. But when she told of 
the wonderful things that had been 
done by Elisha, and said, that if her 
master would go to him, he might 
be cured of his leprosy, Naaman 
believed her. He foUow^ed her ad- 
vice, because it appeared to be rea- 
sonable, though it was given by a 
child. 

And when Naaman was angry 
with Elisha, for commanding him 
to wash in Jordan, and was going 
away in great wrath, he stopped to 
listen to the affectionate advice of 
his servants. When he saw that 



92 THE LIFE 

they were right, and he was wrong, 
he was not ashamed to own that he 
was convinced by his inferiors. He 
went and did as they had advised 
him to do. 

Second : Naaman conquered one 
feeUng in himself which was very 
natural and very strong ; but it was 
not wise. It was a prejudice in 
favour of his own country. 

We all love our own country. 
This is right. We prefer it to any 
other place in the whole world. 
This is right too. But if we think 
there is nothing good or desirable 
any where else, we are prejudiced ; 
because God has not confined his 
blessings to one land, but has scat- 
tered them in every part of the 



OF ELISHA. 93 

world. Naaman had this prejudice. 
Syria was then a powerful king- 
dom, and Damascus a grand and 
delightful city. He thought the 
rivers Abana and Pharpar much 
finer streams than any in the land 
of Israel. He was not willing to 
believe that any healing qualities 
could be imparted to the river Jor- 
dan. But he conquered this preju- 
dice, and it was w^ell that he did ; 
for if he had yielded to it, his 
leprosy would have lasted through 
Hfe. 

Third : Naaman obeyed the com- 
mand God had given by his prophet, 
though the reason of the command 
was not explained to him. He did 
not understand why he was to wash 



94 THE LIFE 

in Jordan. The most powerful medi- 
cines would not cure his disease, 
and he knew that all the water in 
the world would not, of itself, do him 
any good. Why, then, should he 
do so simple a thing as to bathe in 
the river Jordan ? The only reason 
he knew was, that the prophet of 
God had commanded it, and would 
not cure him without; and that was 
a sufficient reason. 

We must obey God, even though 
we do not understand the reason of 
his commands. God has told us in 
the Bible to do some things; and 
has promised, that if we do them, we 
shall be blessed. Now, we may 
not see any connexion between our 
doing these things and the blessing 



OF ELISHA. 95 

promised. But that is no matter. 
God sees the connexion, and he will 
not bestow the blessing unless we 
use the means to obtain it, which 
he has appointed. God knows all 
things, and he has wise reasons 
for all that he does, though we 
may not understand them. It is 
our duty faithfully to obey his com- 
mands. 

Naaman was full of joy and grati- 
tude to God, when he found that he 
was restored to health. He returned 
with all his company to the house 
of Elisha, and stood before him, and 
said, "Behold, now, I know that 
there is no God in all the earth 
but in Israel." Naaman wished to 
make the prophet a present, out of 



96 THE LIFE 

the gold and silver which he had 
brought. Elisha refused to accept 
it. Naaman urged him; but still 
he refused. He did not wish for 
any of Naaman's money. It would 
have done him very little good. The 
prophets chose to live and dress 
plainly, and to deny themselves, so 
that they did not need to be rich. 
Besides, Elisha knew that the mira- 
cle which healed Naaman was per- 
formed by God. Elisha would not 
have been able to promise that Naa- 
man should be cured, by washing in 
Jordan, if God had not directed him 
to do so. It would have been impro- 
per for Elisha to receive payment 
for what he had not done, and had 
in himself no power to perform. 



OF ELISHA. 97 

Elisha wished to show Naaman that 
he was disinterested in sending for 
him, and praying to God to cure 
him. He desired only to do good to 
Naaman. He did not wish to make 
money, or to gain any thing to him- 
self, by doing suclf acts of kindness. 
This would honour God, by showing 
that those who sincerely worshipped 
and served him were not selfish, like 
other people. 

Naaman then told Elisha that he 
was determined to w^orship no other 
God but the God of the Israelites, 
who could do such wonderful things. 
He therefore begged that he might 
take from the land of Israel as much 
earth as two mules could carry, to 
build an altar in Damascus, upon 



98 THE LIFE 

which he could offer sacrifices unto 
the true God. 

I do not know that earth from the 
land of Israel would be any better for 
an altar than any other earth. But, 
perhaps it may have been thought so 
in those days, becSluse the country of 
Palestine was a holy land, or a land 
set apart for the people of God. The 
inhabitants were the only worship- 
pers of the true God upon earth. 
God was present with them in a- very 
peculiar manner. Except when they 
had wicked rulers, they were govern- 
ed by the laws of God, not only as 
individuals, but as a nation. 

But if the earth from Israel was 
not more sacred than any other, Naa- 
man, who had been educated an 



OF ELISHA, 99 

idolater, might naturally have indulg- 
ed such a superstitious idea. I do 
not know whether Elisha granted his 
request, but I think it likely he did. 
Naaman went on to say to Elisha, 
that he was accustomed to go w^ith 
king Benhadad, his master, into the 
temple of Rimmon, the principal 
idol of the Syrians. It was his busi- 
ness to do so, because he was the 
chief officer of the king. ' He was 
determined not to go there any more 
to worship the idol. He asked Eli- 
sha if God would permit him to go 
there, in attendance upon his master. 
He said, that when the king leaned 
on his arm, and bowed before the 
idol, he could, not help bowing also ; 
but as he should not do it with his 



100 THE LIFE 

heart, and only as an act of service 
to his king, he hoped God would 
pardon him. We are not told what 
answer Elisha gave to the question 
of Naaman. Perhaps he saw that 
God w^as teaching him by his Holy 
Spirit, and would lead him by 
degrees to understand and to do 
his will. We may suppose that 
Elisha was not displeased with Naa- 
man's conversation; for he said to 
him at parting, '' Go in peace." 

Naaman and his attendants had 
turned from the door of Elisha. 
They were passing through the 
streets of Samaria, on their way 
homeward. Gehazi was standing 
in deep thought. Though the ser- 
vant of Elisha, he was covetous and 



OF ELISHA. 101 

ambitious. He had been present 
while Ehsha and Naaman talked 
together. He thought his master 
was very fooHsh to refuse the present 
that Naaman had oiTered. He could 
not bear to have Naaman carry all 
those talents of silver, and those 
rich garments, back to Syria. He 
was planning how he might get 
some of them for himself He said, 
'' Behold, my master hath spared 
Naaman, this Syrian, in not re- 
ceiving at his hands that which he 
brought ; but, as the Lord liveth, I 
will run after him and take some- 
what of him." ^^As the Lord liveth^' 
This was a solemn oath, which 
ought not to have been taken except 
on some very serious and important 

i2 



102 THE LIFE 

occasion. Gehazi then followed as 
quickly as he could after Naaman. 
Naaman turned his head, and saw 
hinfi running, and recollected that 
he had seen him at the house of the 
prophet. He immediately alighted 
from his chariot, to meet Gehazi, 
and said to him, ''Is all well?'' 
Gehazi answered, ''All is well." My 
master hath sent me, saying, "Be- 
hold, even now there be come to me 
from Mount Ephraim two young 
men of the sons of the prophets : 
give them, I pray thee, a talent of 
silver, and two changes of garments." 
And Naaman said, "Be content; 
take two talents." And he urged 
him, and bound two talents of silver, 
in two bags, with two changes of 



OF ELISHA. 103 

garments, and laid them upon two 
of his servants, and they bare them 
before him. 

When they came to a secret 
place in the house, Gehazi took 
the silver and the garments and 
hid them. Afterward, he dismissed 
the servants of Naaman, and re- 
turned to his master. Elisha asked 
him, " Whence comest thou, Ge- 
hazi?" Gehazi replied, that he had 
not been absent from home. But 
Elisha knew better. God had given 
to him the power of knowing what 
Gehazi had done, and of hearing 
what he told Naaman. He said, 
'' Went not my heart with thee, 
when the man turned again from 
his chariot to meet thee? Is it a 



104 THE LIFE 

time to receive money, and to re- 
ceive garments, and olive-yards, and 
vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and 
men-servants, and maid-servants?" 
Perhaps Gehazi had expected to 
buy a farm with the money that he 
had obtained from Naaman. Elisha 
said to Gehazi, " The leprosy, there- 
fore, of Naaman shall cleave to thee 
and to thy children for ever." The 
white itjcab of the leprosy instantly 
came over Gehazi. He went out 
from the presence of his master, a 
leper as white as snow. 

This was a terrible punishment ; 
but Gehazi deserved it. He had 
indulged covetous desires. He had 
taken advantage of Naaman's grati- 
tude to Elisha, to rob him of part of 



OF iilLiSriA. 105 

his property. He had told Naaman 
a wicked he, in order to obtain what 
he wished. He had made his master 
appear mean and selfish, when he 
was really generous and disinte- 
rested. He had done what he could 
to hinder Naaman from becoming a 
worshipper of the true God, by 
making him think that the prophets 
of God were no better than other 
men. He had told another lie to 
his master, to conceal his fault. 

All this was a great deal worse 
than it would have been, if Gehazi 
had been a heathen, and had not 
known much better. But he was 
an Israelite, and knew the law of 
God. He had probably been edu- 
cated in one of the schools of the 



106 THE LIFE 

prophets, where that law was taught 
and explained. He had long been 
the chosen servant of Elisha, the 
greatest prophet then living. He 
pretended to be a good man, and 
ought to have been preparing him- 
self to be a teacher of the people, 
who were then in great need of 
instruction. All this greatly in- 
creased his guilt. 



OF ELISHA. 



107 



CHAPTER VII. 



ELISHA MAKES IRON TO SWIM. 



Elisha goes with his scholars to the Jordan — Fords of 
the Jordan — Young men cut down trees for a col- 
lege — An axe falls into the river — Elisha makes iron 
to swim — Benhadad invades Israel — Elisha defeats 
his purpose — Benhadad sends soldiers to take Elisha 
— Elisha's servant alarmed — Chariots and horses of 
fire surround Dathan — The Syrians made blind — 
Elisha leads them to Samaria — Description of Sama- 
ria — The Syrians sent home. 



Some time 
after Elisha 
had cured 
Naaman the 
Syrian, he 
was at one 
of the schools 
of the pro- 




108 THE LIFE 

phets, near the river Jordan. Pro- 
bably it was either at Gilgal or 
Jericho. The college in which they 
lived was not large enough to ac- 
commodate all the students ; and 
some of them came to Elisha, and 
asked permission to go to the Jordan 
and cut down trees, and build a larger 
house near the banks of the river, 
where they might live more com- 
fortably. Elisha consented; but they 
were not willing to go without him, 
because they loved his society and 
instructions. 

Elisha, who was the head, or 
principal of the college, went with 
all his students to the river to cut 
down trees. Perhaps the place 
where they went was the fords 



OF ELISHA. 109 

of Jordan, near Gilgal. This is a 
bend in the river, where it flows 
between high banks that are beauti- 
fully wooded. The water is so shal- 
low that persons cross the river on 
horseback. The scene is very still, 
and green, and lovely; and if you 
look toward the north-east, you will 
see rocky mountains, that seem to 
shut in the river like a w^all. It is 
very likely that these mountains 
were hewn into terraces, or stairs, 
and covered with verdure, in the 
time of EUsha. 

As one of the young men was 
cutting down a tree that grew near 
the edge of the water, his axe fell 
into the river. He was much dis- 
tressed, and said to Elisha, ^^Alas, 
K 



110 



THE LIFE 




master! for it was borrowed." It 
is plain that the prophets were 
poor ; for this young man borrowed 
the axe which he used, and was 
probably unable to pay for it when 
it was lost. The man of God said, 
"Where did it fall?" And the 
young man showed him the place. 
Elisha cut a stick, and cast it into 
the river, in the very spot where 



OF ELISHA. Ill 

the axe had fallen. Immediately 
the axe rose to the surface of the 
water, and floated upon it. Elisha 
said, ''Take it up." And the young 
prophet put out his hand and took 
it. He could now go on very cheer- 
fully with his work; and I doubt 
not a very comfortable building for 
the young men was soon raised, 
near the banks of the river Jordan. 

One would hardly suppose that 
the king of Syria would wish to 
fight with the Israelites, now that 
Elisha had cured his favourite gene- 
ral of the leprosy. But, in about a 
year afterward, he again made war 
against Israel. It is not supposed 
that Naaman was engaged in this 



112 THE LIFE 

war. Perhaps he resigned his office, 
and Hazael was made general about 
this time. Benhadad wished to enter 
the kingdom of Israel, in some quar- 
ter where there were no armed men 
to meet him ; that he might march 
into the country, and subdue the 
inhabitants, and reach some of the 
principal cities, before the army 
of the Israelites could be brought 
against him. 

He called a council of his officers, 
and consulted with them where he 
had better pitch his camp. They 
chose some place where they thought 
the land of Israel would be most un- 
protected ; and they were not to in- 
form anybody what place they had 
chosen. They immediately led on 



OF ELISHA. 113 

their army to that place. But they 
found it defended by the army of 
Israel. Benhadad was obliged to 
retreat. He was disappointed. He 
again called a council of his officers. 
They selected some other part of the 
country, which they thought would 
not be defended. They marched 
thither, but found the Israelites pre- 
pared to meet them. 

I suppose this happened several 
times. The reason was this : — God 
told Elisha against what part of 
Israel Benhadad's army was about 
to march, and Elisha sent a mes- 
seno^er to inform kino^ Jehoram. 
Then Jehoram could lay his plans 
so as to defeat the plans of the king 
of Syria. 

k2 



114 THE LIFE 

At last, Benhadad began to think 
that there must be a traitor among 
his officers, who informed the king 
of Israel of his secret designs. He 
called together his officers, and said 
to them, '' Will ye not show me 
which of us is for the king of Israel?'' 
One of the officers said, '' None, my 
lord, O king : but Elisha, the pro- 
phet that is in Israel, telleth the 
king of Israel the words that thou 
speakest in thy bed-chamber. ' ' Ben- 
hadad was very angry when he 
found that Elisha had given him 
. all this trouble. He determined to 
send a part of his army to take the 
prophet, and make him a prisoner, 
and bring him away from his coun- 
try to the Syrian camp. It was 



OF ELISHA. 115 

foolish for Benhadad to expect to be 
able to do this. He ought to have 
remembered that God, who had 
helped Elisha to perform so many 
miracles, and had told him of things 
that were passing at such a great 
distance, could protect him against 
never so many armed men. 

Benhadad sent a spy into Israel ; 
that is, he caused one of his ser- 
vants to disguise himself so as not 
to be known as a Syrian, and com- 
manded him to go and see where 
Elisha was. The man came back, 
and said he was at Dothan. This 
was a city about twelve miles north 
of Samaria. It was in some one of 
the fields around Dothan that Joseph 
was sold by his brothers to a com- 



116 THE LIFE 

pany of Ishmaelites, who carried 
him into Egypt. This happened, 
you know, about one thousand years 
before the time of Elisha. 

Benhadad sent a great company 
of horses and chariots and armed 
men to take Elisha. They went by 
night, as silently as they could, that 
they might not be seen by the 
Israelites. When they came to 
Dothan, they surrounded the city 
to prevent Elisha from escaping, 
and waited for the morning. 

Morning came. The servant of 
Elisha rose early, and went out of 
the house. He saw a great host of 
horses, and chariots, and armed men 
surrounding the city. He was much 
alarmed. He called his master, and 



OF ELISHA. 117 

said to him, " Alas, my master ! what 
shall we do?" Elisha had confidence 
in God. He knew that God had 
sent his angels to protect him. He 
said to his servant, ^'Fear not; for 
they that be with us are more than 
they that be with them." And 
Elisha prayed, and said, " Lord, I 
pray thee, open his eyes, that he 
may see." The Lord opened the 
eyes of the young man, the servant 
of Elisha, so that he might see those 
things which were hidden from com- 
mon persons. He looked, and all 
around the prophet, and over the 
whole hill on which the city stood, 
were horses and chariots of fire, 
blazing with intense brightness. 
The Syrians now discovered where 



118 THE LIFE 

Elisha was, and entered the city to 
take him. Probably they came in 
at different gates, so as to meet near 
the house of Elisha, and surround 
it. They would also place guards 
at the gates to prevent his escape. 
But all this trouble was of no use. 
They were not fighting against 
Elisha alone, but against the God 
of Israel ; and he had many ways 
of preventing them from doing what 
they wished. 

Elisha prayed to the Lord to send 
blindness upon the Syrians. God 
heard his prayer, and the Syrians 
became blind, and knew not what to 
do or where to go. 

Elisha said to them, ''This is 
not the way, neither is this the city : 



OF ELISHA. 119 

follow me, and I will bring you to 
the man whom ye seek." He led 
them on, and they groped their 
way after him. 

When they had gone about 
twelve miles, Elisha prayed, and 
said, '*Lord, open the eyes of these 
men, that they may see." The 
Lord opened their eyes, and they 
looked around them. And what did 
they see ? They were in the midst 
of a large and populous city, full of 
fine and stately buildings. There 
was a magnificent palace, adorned 
with ivory ; here was a temple, 
which had once been dedicated to 
the worship of Baal, the god of the 
Tyrians. There were no old and 
decayed houses, but every thing 



120 THE LIFE 

was new; for the city had been 
lately built. The walls and towers 
were strong, and well defended by 
soldiers. The city stood on a long 
mount, of an oval figure. All around 
it was a beautiful green valley, 
bounded by a circle of hills, with 
gentle slopes, planted to the top 
with grain and olive and fig trees. 
The mountain on which the city 
stood was well watered, and the 
gardens were pleasant. The inha- 
bitants were engaged in various 
kinds of business; except such as 
had assembled on the house-tops 
and in the streets, to look upon the 
Syrian army. 

Who is that king, surrounded by 
soldiers? It is Jehoram, and that 



OF ELISHA. 121 

is his palace, and those are the city 
guards. This is Samaria, the capital 
city of the kingdom of Israel. 

The Syrians mnst have been 
alarmed and bewildered, when they 
saw that they were in Samaria, and 
in the power of the king of Israel. 
But Jehoram, though he wished to 
destroy them, dared not do it with- 
out the permission of Elisha. He 
said to the prophet, ''My father, 
shall I smite them? shall I smite 
them?" But Elisha would not suf- 
fer it. He said, ''Thou shalt not 
smite them : wouldest thou smite 
those whom thou hast taken cap- 
tive, with thy sword and with thy 
bow? Set bread and water before 

them, that they may eat and drink, 
L ^ 



122 THE LIFE 

and go to their master." The Sy- 
rians then returned home. They 
gave up, for the present, their plan 
of attacking the Israelites. 



OF ELISHA. 123 



CHAPTER VIII. 

ELISHA FORETELLS PLENTY IN SAMARIA. 

The Syrians besiege Samaria — Severe famine — A wo- 
man eats her own son — Jehoram is angry with Elisha 
— He sends men to kill the prophet — Elisha foretells 
abundance in Samaria — The four lepers without the 
city- — They visit the Syrian camp — The Syrians are 
alarmed, and flee — The lepers return to the city — The 
Israelites gather the spoils, and food becomes plenty — 
Jehoram a wicked king — Another famine — Elisha 
tells the Shunamite to leave the country — She goes 
to Philistia — She returns, and asks the king for her 
land. 

Some time afterward a great army 
of the Syrians came into Israel, and 
besieged Samaria. This army was 
commanded by Benhadad. He sur- 
rounded the city of Samaria with 
his soldiers, so that no provisions 



124 THE LIFE 

could be brought into it from the 
country. He continued the siege a 
long time, expecting that all the 
food in the city would be exhausted, 
and that the inhabitants would then 
be obliged to open their gates, and 
submit to him as their conqueror. 

The famine in Samaria became 
very severe and distressing. Large 
sums of money w^ere paid for small 
quantities of the meanest food. 

One day, as the king of Israel was 
walking upon the top of the wall, 
where the soldiers were placed who 
defended the city, a woman cried 
unto him for help. She had been so 
famished with hunger that she had 
given her own son for food for her- 
self and another woman. Thus it 



OF ELISHA. 125 

happened, as Moses had told them, 
hundreds of years before, it would 
happen, if they did not keep God's 
commandments : and the very words 
of Moses are found in Deuteronomy, 
chap, xxviii. ver. 55 to 58, inclusive. 
The king was so shocked, and so fill- 
ed with despair, when he heard the 
story of the woman, that he rent his 
clothes, as people in that country were 
accustomed to do when they were 
in great distress. Those who passed 
by him upon the wall, looked, and 
saw that he had sackcloth under his 
garments. This was a coarse rough 
cloth, made of hair, which the Jews 
and Israelites used to wear when 
they sorrowed for their sins, or 
were suffering some great calamity. 

l2 



126 THE LIFE 

But though Jehoram wore the gar- 
ment of penitence, he was not truly 
sorry for his sins and the sins of the 
people, which had brought upon 
them the displeasure of God. In- 
stead of this, he was angry at Elisha, 
as if that good prophet had been the 
cause of all their suffering. Jehoram 
said, in a great rage, ''God do so, 
and more also to me, if the head of 
Elisha, the son of Shaphat, shall 
stand on him this day." 

Jehoram knew that Elisha had 
not brought the Syrians against 
him, and reduced the city by fa- 
mine ; but he was like other wricked 
men, when they are afflicted, full of 
rage and madness, and determined 
to revenge himself upon somebody. 



OF ELISHA, 127 

How different from this furious 
king was the appearance of Elisha ! 
Though he had suffered with the 
rest of the people, from the want of 
food, he sat calmly in his house, 
with the elders of Samaria around 
him, waiting patiently for deliver- 
ance to come from God. While he 
sat there, he knew that Jehoram 
had sent a messenger to take off his 
head; and he said to the elders, 
" See ye, how this son of a murderer 
hath sent to take away mine head ? 
Look when the messenger cometh, 
shut the door, and hold him fast at 
the door : Is not the somid of his 
master's feet behind him?" 

Elisha called Jehoram the son of 
a murderer, because his father, Ahab, 



128 THE LIFE 

had permitted the prophets of God 
and Naboth to be slain by Jezebel. 
Ehsha knew that Jehoram would 
soon follow his messenger, and he 
ordered the door to be closed till the 
king should arrive. 

The king soon came, and entered 
with his attendants into the house 
of Ehsha. He immediately showed 
his impatience, and want of trust in 
God, by exclaiming, " Behold, this 
evil is of the Lord ; what should I 
wait for the Lord any longer?" 
Elisha then delivered to the king a 
message which he had received from 
God. He said, " Hear ye the word 
of the Lord ; Thus saith the Lord, 
To-morrow, about this time, shall a 
measure of fine flour be sold for a she- 



OF ELISHA, 129 

kel, and two measures of barley for 
a shekel, in the gate of Samaria." A 
lord on whose hand the king leaned 
disbelieved this promise of God. He 
said, scornfully, that he should not 
expect provisions to be abundant in 
Samaria on the morrow^ unless the 
Lord should make windows in -hea- 
ven, and rain them down. It was 
very impious in this man to disbe- 
lieve what God had said; and he 
was soon punished. Elisha said to 
him, '^Behold, thou shalt see it 
with thine eyes, but shalt not eat 
thereof" 

The sun was low in the western 
sky. It shone upon the helmets^ 
and shields, and burnished armour 
of the Syrians who surrounded the 



130 THE LIFE 

city. It shone also upon the senti- 
nels who marched backward and 
forward on the walls, and upon the 
inhabitants of the city, as they 
passed, with pale and melancholy 
countenances, silently and fearfully 
along the streets. 

Now the sun has set behind the 
mountains of Samaria, and the sha- 
dows of twilight have gathered over 
the city. Four leprous men are 
sitting at one of the gates, and talk- 
ing together. They had come under 
the walls to be protected from the 
Syrians. Besides being afflicted 
with a distressing disease, they were 
almost dying with hunger. What 
could they do? They said one to 
another, ''Why sit we here until 



OF ELISHA. 131 

we die? If we say we will enter 
into the city, then the famine is in 
the city, and we shall die there: 
and if we sit still here, we die also. 
Now, therefore, come, and let us 
fall unto the hosts of the Syrians : 
if they save us alive, we shall live ; 
and if they kill us, we shall but die." 
And they rose up in the twilight, 
to go to the camp of the Syrians. 
They went from one end of the 
camp to the other, but found the 
tents all deserted. Not one of the 
Syrians was to be seen. What had 
become of them ? The tents of the 
officers and soldiers remained, just as 
they were when they had been occu- 
pied by their owners. They were 
filled with provisions, and rich fur- 



132 THE LIFE 

niture and garments, and the horses 
and asses of the army were tied near 
the camp. Every thing showed that 
the Syrians had just fled, and had 
gone in great haste and confusion. 

Now the reason of their sudden 
departure was this : God had deter- 
mined to protect the Samaritans 
against the Syrians. He had caused 
the Syrians, just before the lepers 
arrived at their camp, when the 
darkness was coming on, and they 
could not see distinctly, to hear a 
great noise of chariots, and a noise 
of horses ; a noise like a great host 
coming against them. They said, 
'^Lo, the king of Israel hath hired 
against us the kings of the Hittites 
and the kings of the Egyptians, to 



OF ELISHA, 133 

come upon us." Wherefore, they 
arose and fled in the twihght, and 
left their tents, and their horses, and 
their asses; even the camp as it 
was, and fled for their life. 

The lepers went into one tent, 
where they found food ready prepar- 
ed. They ate and drank what they 
wanted, and carried away gold, and 
silver, and raiment, and hid it. They 
then went into another tent, and did 
the same ; till they had secured for 
themselves as much property as they 
wished. Then they recollected that 
they were doing wrong, in not tell- 
ing the good news to the people in 
the city. 

It was night; the stars shone in 

the heavens, and the inhabitants 
M 



134 THE LIFE 

had gone to rest, when the lepers 
again reached the city. They called 
to the porter of the gate of Samaria, 
and told him that the Syrians had 
deserted their camp. The porter of 
the gate went instantly and told the 
porters of the king's palace, and the 
king was informed of the good news. 
He arose from his bed ; but he did 
not believe that the Syrians had 
gone quite away. He suspected 
that they had hid themselves at a 
little distance from the camp, to 
deceive the Israelites, and draw 
them out from the city. He thought 
that when the gates were open, and 
the people were confusedly hasten- 
ing to the camp, the Syrians would 
return. They might then easily 



OF ELISHA. 135 

destroy, or make prisoners of the 
Israelites, who would not be on 
their guard. 

It was not strange that king 
Jehoram should suspect that this 
was the design of the Syrians; for 
such deceptions are often used in 
war. But if Jehoram had paid 
proper attention to what Elisha 
had said, the day before, he would 
have thouo^ht that God mi^ht have 
interfered to send away the Syrians ; 
since he had promised, in some way, 
to deliver the Israelites. 

One of the king's servants advised 
that a few horsemen should be sent 
out to discover where the Syrians 
were. The king sent two men on 
horses, and they followed in the track 



136 THE LIFE 

of the Syrian army as far as the Jor- 
dan. They easily found the path 
which the Syrians had taken; for 
the way was full of o^arments and 
vessels, which they had cast from 
them in their haste. 

The messengers returned, and 
told the king that the Syrians had 
certainly gone homeward. Then 
the people went out, and took what 
they wanted from the tents of the 
Syrians ; and so great was the abun- 
dance of provisions that a measure of 
fine flour was sold for a shekel, and 
two measures of barley for a shekel, 
according to the word of the Lord. 

The king appointed the lord on 
whose arm he was accustomed to 
lean, to have the charge of the city 



OF ELISHA. 137 

gate ; perhaps to regulate the provi- 
sion market that was held there. 
The people, in their hunger and im- 
patience to go out and come in, 
threw him down and trod upon him 
till he died. This was the punish- 
ment of his unbelief, and the fulfil- 
ment of the threatening of God by 
Elisha, " Behold, thou shalt see it 
with thine eyes, but shalt not eat 
thereof." It is a great sin to dis- 
believe the promises of God. 

Though Jehoram was not quite 
so bad as his father Ahab, he was 
still a very wicked king. He at first 
put away the image of Baal, but he 
afterwards permitted it to be re- 
stored and worshipped. I suppose 
this was owing to the influence of 

m2 



138 THE LIFE 

his mother Jezebel, who Kved at his 
court. It shows that it is a sad 
thing to have a wicked mother. 
Many of the Israehtes had become 
idolaters in the days of Ahab, and 
others might be tempted, by the 
example of the king, and Jezebel, 
and the great men about the palace, 
to join in worshipping the idol. 

God told Elisha that he should 
punish them by sending a famine 
upon Israel. Elisha went to the 
woman of Shunem, whose son he 
had restored to life, and advised her 
to go, with her family, and live in 
some other country; because God 
would send a famine upon the land 
of Israel, which would last seven 
years. 



OF ELISHA. 139 

This woman was not like Je- 
horam and his attendants, who dis- 
believed the word of God. No; 
she instantly arose, and went, with 
her family, to Philistia, on the bor- 
ders of the Mediterranean. There 
she remained till the famine was 
over. 

But when, at the end of se- 
ven years, she returned, she found 
that some person had taken posses- 
sion of her house and land, and 
refused to give it up to her. She 
went, with her son, to complain to 
the king. 

It happened that, just about this 
time, king Jehoram felt a great cu- 
riosity to hear of the miracles that 
had been done bv Elisha. But Je- 



140 THE LIFE 

horam did not wish to see the pro- 
phet himself, lest he should reprove 
him for his faults. So Jehoram sent 
for Gehazi, though he was a leper. 
It was not unlawful to speak to a 
man who had the leprosy ; and Ge- 
hazi could stand at such a distance 
as not to communicate the disease. 

Gehazi began to give an account 
of all the miracles of Elisha ; and 
just as he was telling how Elisha 
had raised the Shunemite's son to 
life, the woman herself came in, and 
her son was with her. And Gehazi 
said, *^ My lord, O king, this is the 
woman, and this is her son, whom 
Elisha restored to life." The king 
asked her what she wanted ; and she 
told him that her land was unjustly 



OF ELISHA. 141 

kept from her. Jehoram said to an 
officer, " Restore all that was her's, 
and all the fruits of the field, since 
the day that she left the land even 
until now." 



142 



THE LIFE 



CHAPTER IX. 

ELISHA aOES TO DAMASCUS. 

Elisha prepares for a journey — Description of Gilead 
and Bashan — Damascus — Description of Damascus 
— Benhadad sends Hazael to Elisha — Elisha^s ad- 
dress to Hazael — Hazael kiils Benhadad, and be* 
comes king. 




round him with a girdle, and taken 



OF ELISHA. 143 

his staff in his hand. He is going a 
a long journey, from Samaria to 
Damascus, the capital of Syria. He 
does not take this journey on his 
own account. The prophets of God 
do not live, or labour, or travel for 
themselves. He goes at the com- 
mand of God. We may trace his v^ay 
as he passes over the plain of Esdrae- 
lon, and crossing the Jordan not far 
from the lake of Gennesareth, enters 
the highlands of Gilead and Bashan. 
This country wsls full of every 
variety of beautiful scenery. The 
air was cooled by fresh breezes from 
the high mountains, and streams 
rushed down their sides to water 
and enrich the plains. In the re- 
cesses of the mountains were deep 



144 THE LIFE 

valleys, and green meadows, and 
gently flowing rivulets. Upon the 
beautifully rounded hills the flocks 
and fat cattle of Bashan fed in the 
pastures, or rested under the spread- 
ing oaks. Groves of the finest trees 
were scattered about the plains, and 
upon the slopes of the hill. The 
cities and villages of the children of 
Manasseh appeared here and there 
in the landscape, rising above the 
gardens, and wheat-fields, and olive- 
grounds around them. Farther to 
the north-east was the fruitful plain 
of Hauran; and presently the tra- 
veller found himself among the 
mountains that surround the city 
of Damascus. This city lies in a 
fruitful plain, at the foot of moun- 



OF ELISHA. 145 

tains which belong to the eastern 
range of Lebanon. It is encircled 
on three sides by hills in the form 
of a triumphal arch. As Elisha was 
passing around one of these hills he 
came in sight of Damascus. The 
walls and towers of the city rose out 
of a forest of gardens and trees, 
which was twelve miles in circum- 
ference. 

A river of cold pure water, which 
rises in Lebanon, flows through the 
plain. It is now called Barrady; 
but it is probably the same river 
that was named Abana, in the days 
of Elisha. At the foot of some 
rocky hills, about five miles to the 
north-west of the city, the river is 

divided into several streams. These 

N 



146 THE LIFE 

streams pass around the city, and 
water the gardens, and one of them 
runs directly through the city. The 
plain of Damascus is called the 
paradise of the earth. It is full of 
palms and cypresses, ornamented 
gardens, and delightful meadows. 
A great variety of fruits, such as 
oranges, citrons, and apricots, grow 
in the gardens. The winding paths 
that lead in every direction from 
the city, through groves, and or- 
chards, and by the side of fountains 
and brooks, afford delightful walks 
to the inhabitants. Many summer- 
houses open into the gardens, where 
persons who are weary, or overcome 
by the heat, can rest and refresh 
themselves. The several streams 



OF ELISHA. 147 

that water the plain meet and again 
unite below the city, forming a 
large waterfall. It is pleasant to sit 
there beneath the trees at noon, and 
listen to the sound of the cataract, 
and watch its dashing spray. 

The street which is called Straight 
extends from the eastern to the west- 
ern gate of Damascus. It is broad 
and well paved. 

Benhadad, king of Syria, was 
then ill at Damascus. Some person 
informed him that Elisha was ap- 
proaching the city. He immediately 
told Hazael, his chief officer, to take 
a present, and go and meet the pro- 
phet of God, and inquire of the 
Lord, by him, whether Benhadad 
would recover of his disease. So 



148 THE LIFE 

Hazael loaded forty camels with 
every good thing that was to be 
found in Damascus, and went out to 
meet Elisha, and said to him, "Thy 
son Benhadad, king of Syria, hath 
sent me to thee, saying. Shall I re- 
cover of this disease?" 

Elisha answered, that Benhadad 
would certainly die, but his death 
would not be caused by his disease. 

Elisha then looked earnestly and 
steadfastly into the face of Hazael ; 
and, as he looked, he wept. 

Hazael was confased. He said, 
"Why wefepeth my lord?" 

Elisha answered, " Because I 
know the evil that thou wilt do unto 
the children of Israel; their strong 
holds wilt thou set on fire, and their 



OF ELISHA. 149 

young men wilt thou slay with the 
sword, and wilt dash their children 
to the ground." 

Hazael was surprised that Elisha 
should think so ill of him. He had 
formed no such designs ; and he did 
not know the wickedness of his own 
heart 

He said, ''What! is thy servant a 
dog, that he should do this great 
thing?" 

And Elisha replied, ''The Lord 
hath showed me that thou shalt be 
king over Syria." 

Hazael would be a king. Then 

he would have much power and 

influence, would be often tempted to 

do wrong, and would have nothing 

to restrain him : he would then find 
n2 



150 THE LIFE 

himself capable of doing such deeds 
of cruelty, as he was now shocked 
to hear mentioned. " The heart is 
deceitful above all things, and des- 
perately wicked : who can know 
it?" 

The prediction of Elisha had 
already excited evil thoughts in the 
mind of Hazael. He deter mi aed to 
murder Benhadad, and obtain the 
kingdom for himself, immediately, 
instead of waiting patiently till God 
should give it to him. He left 
Elisha, and returned to his master, 
who said to him, '^ What said Elisha 
to thee?" Hazael answered, ''He 
told me that thou shouldest surely 
recover." This falsehood was pro- 
bably designed to make Benhadad 



OF ELISHA. 161 

easy, and to put him off his guard. 
The next day Hazael took a thick 
cloth, and dipped it in water, and 
spread it on the king's face. This, 
caused the immediate death of 
Benhadad. Hazael then began to 
reign over Syria. 



152 THE LIFE 



CHAPTER X. 

ELISHA SENDS A PROPHET TO ANOINT 
JEHU. 

Elisha sends a prophet to anoint Jehu — Jehu pro- 
claimed king — Jezebel killed, and devoured by dogs 
— Jehu destroys the temple and priests of Baal — His 
son reigns in his stead. 

It will be recollected by those 
who have read the story of Elijah, 
that he was sent by God to pro- 
nounce a curse upon king Ahab, 
after the murder of Naboth by Jeze- 
bel. Elijah then told Ahab that 
God had determined to punish him 
for all his sins, by destroying his 
family^ and giving the kingdom of 



OF ELISHA. 153 

Israel to a person who was not 
related to him. 

The time had now come for this 
threatening to be fulfilled. Elisha 
called a young prophet, and told 
him to take a box of oil, and go to 
Ramoth-gilead, and anoint Jehu, one 
of the captains of the army, to be 
Idng, instead of Jehoram, the son of 
Ahab, who now reigned. The young 
man, who was sent on this errand, 
is supposed by some to have been 
the prophet Jonah. 

When the prophet arrived at 
Ramoth-gilead, he found Jehu sit- 
ting with the rest of the captains of 
the army. 

The prophet said, ''I have an 
errand to thee, O captain." And 



154 THE LIFE 

Jehu said, '^ Unto which of all of us ?" 
And he said, '' To thee, O captain." 
Then Jehu went with the pro- 
phet into the house, and the pro- 
phet poured the oil on his head, 
and said, *^Thus saith the Lord God 
of Israel, I have anointed thee king 
over the people ot the Lord, even 
over Israel. And thou shalt smite 
the house of Ahab, thy master, that 
I may avenge the blood of my ser- 
vants the prophets, and the blood of 
all the servants of the Lord, at the 
hand of Jezebel. For the whole 
house of Ahab shall perish. And 
I will make the house of Ahab 
like the house of Jeroboam, the son 
of Nebat, and like the house of 
Baasha, the son of Ahijah. And 



OF ELISHA. 155 

the dogs shall eat Jezebel in the 
portion of Jezreel, and there shall 
be none to bury her." 

The young man opened the door 
and fled. He had been employed 
upon a dangerous errand. If any of 
the friends of king Jehoram had 
discovered what he was doing, they 
would instantly have taken his life. 

When Jehu returned to the cap- 
tains, they inquired what had been 
done; and he told them. They 
instantly united in proclaiming him 
king. They spread their garments 
for him to walk upon ; which was a 
common way of showing honour to 
a person in those days. They blew 
the trumpets, saying, '' Jehu is 
king." This support of the captains 



156 THE LIFE 

secured to Jehu the services of the 
army, which would make it easy 
to dethrone Jehoram. 

Jehu immediately rode in his 
chariot, at the head of the army, 
towards Jezreel, where Jehoram was. 
Jehoram saw him coming, and think- 
ing he had just returned from fight- 
ing against the Syrians, went out to 
meet him. Ahaziah, king of Judah, 
who was visiting his uncle Jehoram, 
accompanied him. 

And Jehu drew a bow, and sent 
an arrow which pierced the heart 
of Jehoram ; and he died. They 
threw his body into the field of Na- 
both, whom his mother, Jezebel, had 
murdered. Ahaziah, the king of 
Judah, attempted to flee; but he 



OF ELISHA. 157 

was slain, by the command of Jehu, 
before he could make his escape- 
But the most guilty person in 
Ahab's family was yet to be punish- 
ed. Queen Jezebel was in the pa- 
lace at Jezreel, when she heard of the 
death of her son, and the approach 
of Jehu at the head of his army. 
She knew her danger ; but she was 
too proud to submit to the con- 
queror. She painted her eyelids, 
to make her eyes look large and 
bright, put on a richly ornamented 
head-dress, and looked out of the 
window. "* 

As Jehu entered the palace gate, 
she called to him, and reproach- 
ed him for killing the king, his 

master. Jehu ordered some ser- 




158 THE LIFE 

vants, whom he saw at the win- 
dows, to throw her down. They 
threw her upon the pavement, and 
she was trodden under foot by the 
horses. Shortly after, Jehu com- 
manded some persons to go and 
bury her. They went, but found 
she had been devoured by dogs. 
Thus the prophecy of Elijah was 
fulfilled, when he said, " In the por- 
tion of Jezreel shall dogs eat the 
flesh of Jezebel." 

Seventy of the descendants of 
Ahab lived in Samaria. Jehu caused 
them all to be slain. He slew also 
some of the princes of Judah, who 
belonged to the family of Ahab, and 
had come to visit their relatives, the 
young princes of Israel: He de- 



OF ELISHA. 15ft 

stroyed the image and temple of 
Baal, and put all the priests of Baal 
to death. But Jehu continued to 
worship the golden calves, and was 
not careful to obey the law of God. 
He reigned twenty-eight years in 
Samaria. 

Jehoahaz, his son, was the next 
king. He sinned against God, and 
tempted the Israelites to sin. To 
punish them, God delivered them 
into the hands of Hazael, king of 
Syria, who treated them with much 
cruelty, as Elisha had before told 
Hazael he would do, when they met 
each other at Damascus. Jehoahaz 
died when he had reigned seventeen 
years; and his son, Joash, began to 
reign in his stead. 



160 THE LIFE 



CHAPTER XI. 

elisha's death. 

Nothing said of Elisha for forty-five years — What he 
was probably doing during this time — Elisha falls 
sick — King Joash visits him — Why he came to see 
him — Meaning of symbol — Elisha tells the king to 
take bow and arrows — He foretells victories over 
the Syrians — Elisha dies — Account of the death 
of good men in the Bible — Short examples — Of 
more consequence how we live than how we die — 
Reflections — A dead man restored to life by the 
bones of Elisha — God watches over the dust of his 
people. 

During forty-five years, nothing 
is said of Elisha in the Bible. He 
w^as undoubtedly engaged in his 
usual employment of superintend- 
ing the schools of the prophets, and 
teaching the people. As he earn- 



OF ELISHA. 161 

estly desired the prosperity of his 
countrymen, he must have been dis- 
tressed at the tyranny and oppres- 
sion of Hazael. But he knew that 
the people deserved it, and that God 
was just in punishing them. I have 
no doubt he often wept for their 
miseries, and prayed to God that 
their afflictions might do them good, 
and make them cease to worship 
idols. He would continually warn 
them to repent of sin, and remember 
the God of their fathers. And when 
God sent the Israelites relief from 
the Syrians, Elisha would bless him 
for his goodness and mercy. 

Hazael would not be likely to let 
his army hurt Elisha, w^ho had fore- 
told that he should be king over 

o2 



162 THE LIFE 

Syria ; and Jehoahaz seems to have 
been too much occupied in defend- 
ing his kingdom, to disturb the pro- 
phet. EHsha could, therefore, go 
on quietly teaching his pupils, and 
preparing for a better world, where 
there are no wars, nor sins, to dis- 
turb the happy inhabitants. 

When Jehoahaz died, Elisha may 
have hoped that Joash would not be 
so wicked as his father ; but, if he did, 
he was disappointed ; for Joash was 
a bad man. The aged prophet could, 
therefore, find little to comfort him 
in the condition or prospects of the 
Israelites. This, I doubt not, would 
lead him to look to heaven, where 
he hoped soon to rest from his labours 
and sorrows. 



OF ELISHA, 163 

At last, Elisha became sick, and 
was about to die. As soon as king 
Joash heard of it, he was much alarm- 
ed, and went to see him. I do not 
think that Joash was in the habit of 
visiting the prophet, or of sending 
for him to come to the palace. Bad 
men do not wish to be with those 
that fear God. They hate their 
company, and are very uneasy when 
such persons are present. 

But Joash knew that Elisha was a 
distinguished prophet of the living 
God, and that his death would be a 
great loss to the Israelites. So he 
came down to see Elisha, and wept 
over him and said, '' O, my father, 
my father ! the chariot of Israel, and 
the horsemen thereof" 



164 THE LIFE 

I think Joash would not have 
gone to the dying bed of a good 
man, if he had not feared that great 
evils would come upon himself and 
his kingdom, in consequence of 
Elisha's death. 

He might have been taught by 
the scene how calmly a friend of 
the true God can die : but he 
did not wish to be instructed how 
to become pious and fitted for hea- 
ven. He wept, not because a pro- 
phet of the Lord was about to be 
taken away from his kingdom, and 
he could no longer enjoy the benefit 
of the example, and prayers, and 
influence of Elisha. Oh, no ! I do 
not suppose that Joash thought 
much of this. He only thought that 



OF ELISHA. 165 



when Elisha was gone, the Syrians 
might do him a great deal of harm. 
He desired that the prophet should 
live ; for he knew that Elisha could 
do more to protect his country than 
horses and chariots of war. 

But Joash may have been sorry, 
when he heard that Elisha was sick, 
that he had so much neglected him. 
Wicked men often ridicule and 
slight their pious friends and neigh- 
bours ; but, when they see them 
about to die, they begin to be trou- 
bled, and sometimes confess they 
have done wrong. They will praise 
a good man after he is dead : but, if 
he should come back from the grave, 
and live among them again, they 
would treat him just as they did 



166 THE LIFE 

before. The reason is, that they 
are not truly sorry for the injury 
they have done. Their consciences 
tell them they have done vrrong; 
but their hearts do not really repent 
of it. 

Elisha wished to inform Joash of 
something that would happen in 
future. Instead of telling him in 
words, he expressed it by a sym- 
bol, which he afterwards explain- 
ed. A symbol is where one object 
or action is made to represent an- 
other. 

Elisha said unto the king, '^ Take 
bow and arrows." And he took 
unto him bow and arrows. And he 
said to the king of Israel, '' Put thine 
hand upon the bow." And he put 



OF ELISHA. 



167 



his hand upon it. And Elisha put 
his hands upon the king's hands. 
And he said, ''Open the window- 
eastward." And he opened it. Then 
Ehsha said, '' Shoot." And he shot. 




And he said, ''The arrow of the Lord's 
deliverance, and the arrow of deU- 
verance from Syria : for thou shalt 
smite the Syrians in Aphek, till 
thou have consumed them." And 



168 THE LIFE 

he said, "Take the arrows." And 
he took them. And he said nnta 
the king of Israel, " Smite upon the 
ground." And he smote thrice, and 
stopped. And the man of God was 
wroth with him, and said, "Thoii 
shouldest have smitten five or six 
times; then hadst thou smitten S)nria 
till thou hadst consumed it : where- 
as now thou shalt smite Syria but 
thrice." 

After this visit from the king, 
Elisha died, and they buried him. 
We do not know the circumstances 
of his death, or how they celebrated 
his funeral. I believe that he died 
calm and peaceful, amidst the la- 
mentations of the sons of the pro- 
phets and the friends of the God of 



OF ELISHA. 169 

Israel. They followed him to the 
grave, with deep grief for his death 
and for their own loss. They placed 
his body in the tomb, and went to 
their homes filled with sadness. But 
the spirit of Elisha was now among 
the just in heaven. He was a com- 
panion of angels before the throne 
of God. There he mingled with 
the saints of whom he had often 
read in the Bible, and of whom he 
had often thought, when here on the 
earth. There he once more met with 
his old master and friend Elijah, 
whom he had seen ascending in the 
chariot of fire. 

How short and simple, but affect- 
ing, is the account of the death of 
good men in the Bible ! All that is 



170 THE LIFE 

said of the death of Abraham is, 
''Then Abraham gave up the ghost, 
and died, in a good old age ; an old 
man, and full of years, and was 
gathered to his people." 

It speaks thus of the death of Isaac : 
" And Isaac gave up the ghost, and 
died, and was gathered unto his 
people, being old and full of days : 
and his sons Esau and Jacob buried 
him." Of the death of Moses, it is 
only said, " So Moses, the servant 
of the Lord, died there, in the land 
of Moab, according to the word 
of the Lord. And he buried him 
in a valley, in the land of Moab, 
over against Beth-peor ; but no man 
knoweth of his sepulchre unto this 
day." And, of Elisha's death, the 



OF ELISHA. 171 

only account we have is, ''Elisha 
died, and they buried him." In a 
similar manner, the Bible mentions 
the death of many other celebrated 
saints. Of some, it does not even 
tell either the time, or the place of 
their death. In this number are 
Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, and many 
other prophets ; and Peter, Paul, 
John, and others, of the apostles. 

And what lessons are we to learn 
from this ? That it is more important 
how we live, than how we die. If we 
live as the righteous do, we shall die 
their death. But, however we die, if 
we live a useless, ungodly life, we 
shall be wretched for ever beyond 
the grave. And, however we die, 
if we have here devoted our days 



172 THE LIFE 

to the service of God, he will watch 
over our dust, as it sleeps in the 
tomb. He will raise it, an incor- 
ruptible body, on the morning of 
the resurrection, and we shall shine 
as the stars in the firmament for 
ever and ever. 

Who that reads this book would 
not wish to be happy after death? 
Who would be shut out of hea- 
ven, and live always with drunk- 
ards, and liars, and murderers, and 
idolaters, far away from the man- 
sions of peace and blessedness? 
Remember — 

" Those holy gates for ever bar 
Pollution, sin, and shame ; 
None shall obtain admittance there 
But followers of the Lamb," 



OF ELISHA. 173 

If you would be the companion of 
saints and angels in another world, 
you must be the companion of good 
men in this. If you would worship 
God and the Lamb, in heaven, you 
must repent of sin, and trust in 
Christ, here, on the earth. 

Some time after the death of Eli- 
sha, a company of mourners were 
bearing the dead body of a friend to 
the tomb. As they passed slowly 
along, with heavy hearts, and with 
wailing and melancholy music, they 
spied, at some distance, a band of 
armed men advancing to meet them. 
This was the season of the year in 
which kings led out their armies to 
war. The mourners were fright- 
ened ; for they knew that the band 

p2 



174 THE LIFE 

of men approaching were Moabites, 
who would either kill them, or take 
them prisoners and carry them into 
another land. So they cast the body 
hastily into the tomb of Elisha, which 
was near by, and were turning to flee 
away. But no sooner had the body 
of the dead man touched the bones 
of Elisha, than it was restored to life. 
The man began to breathe. He rose 
up, and came forth from the tomb, 
and perhaps hastened away from the 
Moabites, in company with his as- 
tonished friends. 

How precious in the eyes of the 
Lord is even the verj^ dust of his 
people ! Elisha had lain in the 
grave until the flesh had fallen from 
his bones, and his friends had pro- 




The dead restored to life by touching the bones of Elisha. 



175 



OF ELISHA. 177 

bably ceased to mourn for him. But 
the Lord still watched over the grave 
of his faithful prophet. It was not 
any power that belonged to the bones 
of Elisha, which raised the dead man 
to life. No; it was the power of 
God. He meant to show the Israel- 
ites that Elisha was a good man, 
and that they ought to remember 
his counsels. And I do not suppose 
the Israelites were so foolish as to 
take the bones of Elisha, and carry 
them about, for the sake of healing 
the sick, as some people for this 
purpose now carry about the bones 
of those whom they call saints. 

How sweet is the slumber of the 
righteous in the grave ! They may 



178 THE LIFE 

be forgotten by their neighbours; 
friends may at last cease to think 
of them, or think of them only now 
and then, when they go to the grave- 
yard to bury other friends. But 
God never forgets his people, though 
they may have been dead many 
thousand years. And he will finally 
call their bodies from the tomb, and 
take them home to heaven. There 
they will never be sick, never die, 
and never become old and feeble. 



OF ELISHA. 179 



CHAPTER XII. 

ELIJAH AND ELISHA COMPARED. 

Things in which Elijah and Elisha were alike — Things 
in which they were unUke — God suits the talents 
and qualities of his people to their duties — Elijah's 
departure from the world resembled his life — Elisha*s 
death similar to his life. 

As Elijah and Elisha prophesied 
in Israel at nearly the same time, 
and as Elisha was the pnpil and 
successor of Elijah, it may be inte- 
resting to notice in what things they 
resembled each other, and in what 
things they were different from each 
other. 

They were alike in love to God, 



180 THE LIFE 

and in living humblC; holy, and 
obedient lives. Both of them were 
men of much prayer; both were 
patriotic and disinterested. They 
loved their country : they thought 
little of their own sufferings, or even 
of their own lives, in comparison 
with ttie prosperity and happiness 
of the Israelites. They knew that 
their countrymen could not be pros- 
perous and happy, without obeying 
and worshipping the God of their 
fathers. And both Elijah and Elisha 
were willing to be poor and self- 
denying, and to labour day and 
night to promote the worship of 
the true God among their brethren^ 
They were both temperate in their 
habits, and moderate in their desires. 



OF ELISHA. 181 

They sought not the favour of men, 
but the approbation of God and of 
their own consciences. They spent 
much time and strength in educating 
a number of young men, and pre- 
paring them to become prophets and 
ministers among the Israelites. They 
endeavoured, in this way, to supply 
the places of the priests and Levites, 
who had gone to Jerusalem to wor- 
ship at the temple. 

Elijah and Elisha were alike in 
some of the miracles which they 
wrought. Elijah multiplied the oil 
and meal of the widow of Zare- 
phath, and raised her son from the 
dead. Elisha increased the oil of 

the prophet's widow, and restored 
Q 



182 THE LIFE 

to life the son of the woman of 
Shunem. 

But, in some other respects, Eli- 
jah and Elisha were quite unlike 
each other. Elijah was raised up 
by God to do good in a particular 
way. The king and princes and 
people of Israel had become so ex- 
ceedingly wicked, that God could 
not any longer treat them with 
mildness and forbearance. A pro- 
phet was needed of great boldness 
and severity, who would denounce 
punishment against the king and 
his family, and destroy the priests 
of Baal, who tempted the people to 
sin. 

Elijah was such a man. He 
was fearless and decided. A kind 



OF ELISHA. 183 

of mystery is thrown around him. 
Nothing is told us of his parents, or 
of his early life and education, ex- 
cept that he was a native of Tishbe, 
in Gilead. The first we know of 
him, he was standing in a rough 
garment, and with a stern brow, 
before the king of Israel, and threat- 
ening him with a severe judgment 
from God. He is brought so sud- 
denly before us ; he shows so little 
fear of the king, or desire of his 
favour ; so little sympathy with the 
feelings of ordinary men appears in 
his manner, that one might almost 
fancy him a messenger sent directly 
from God, and having no relation 
to this world. We look again, and 
he has vanished. God has con- 



184 THE LIFE 

ducted him to a place of safety ; and 
no one can inform the king whither 
he has gone. 

A long interval passes; and he 
appears on Mount Carmel^ to main- 
tain the honour of the God of Israel 
against the king, and the people, 
and the idolatrous priests of Baal. 
He is alone; but he is not afraid. 
He addresses the people with severe 
reproof and bitter irony ; he shows, 
by a miracle, that Jehovah is the 
true God : he takes the priests of Baal 
to the brook Kishon, and puts them 
to death. Then he withdraws to 
the desert. 

Years pass away; and he again 
appears, in the same unexpected 
manner, to Ahab, in the vineyard 



OF ELISHA. 186 

of Naboth. There, with his usual 
stern severity, he reproves the terri- 
fied king, pronounces sentence upon 
him as a criminal, and disappears. 
Next we see him solemnly calling 
down fire from heaven, to consume 
the messengers of king Ahaziah. 
Everywhere he appears the same 
courageous, firm, and serious pro- 
phet. He performs the work that 
God commands, and then retires, as 
though he had nothing more to do 
with men. 

Elijah was a reformer. A re- 
former is not generally so social 
and domestic in his feelings as some 
other men. But he needs to be bold 
and decided, and zealous for the 
honour of God, and severe in re- 

(i2 



186 THE LIFE 



buking sinners. He should be a 
man of elevated mind and self-deny- 
ing habits. He should have no false 
pity for such as break the law of 
God. He must learn not to fear 
death, and then he will not be afraid 
of the anger of kings. He must learn 
to do without the comforts and con- 
veniences of life, and then he will 
not desire the favour of great men. 
Elijah had a kind and affectionate 
disposition, as is shown by his treat- 
ment of the widow of Zarephath; 
but his circumstances made it ne- 
cessary for him, generally, not to 
indulge his feelings. 

Elisha, on the contrary, was social 
and gentle in his temper. He was 
found dwelling among men, and 



OF ELISHA, 187 

doing them acts of kindness: he 
healed the waters of Jericho, and 
went with the young prophets to 
the banks of the Jordan, to cheer 
them, by his conversation, during 
their labour. He often visited his 
friend, the woman of Shunem, and 
sympathized strongly with her afflic- 
tion at the death of her son. 

His miracles were usually those 
of kindness and mercy. Besides 
raising the Shunemite's son, he 
recovered the lost axe of the young 
prophet, and supplied the armies of 
Israel and Judah with water, in the 
desert of Moab. He many times 
delivered the Israelites from the 
Syrians; and once, when part of 
the Syrian army were struck with 



188 THE LIFE 

blindness, and led into Samaria, he 
delivered them from the king of 
Israel. He healed the leprosy of 
Naaman, and removed v^hatever 
was poisonous from the food which 
he had caused to be prepared for 
the young prophets. 

His messages to the kings of Israel 
were generally messages of mercy. 
He did not need so much boldness 
as Elijah had, to fit him to deliver 
these messages. And what God 
told him to say would not so much 
offend the great men of Israel, as 
what God had told Elijah to say. 
Elisha might, generally, live among 
them in peace, and yet do all the 
duties which God required of him 
as a prophet. 



OF ELISHA, 189 

God suits the talents and the qua- 
lities of his servants to the duties 
which they have to perform. I do 
not know that Elijah loved God 
nnore than Elisha did, or that he 
was any more an enemy to idolatry , 
or any more zealous for the honour 
of God, than Elisha was. But I do 
not think that Elijah could have 
lived as quietly as Elisha seems to 
have done, in Samaria. I think his 
zeal would have led him to attack 
idolatry so boldly, that he would 
have excited the anger and hatred 
of his countrymen. God designed 
Elijah and Elisha for different em- 
ployments in his service ; so he gave 
them different tempers and talents. 

Elisha might not have been so 



190 THE LIFE 

fearless in exposing the crimes of 
Ahab as Elijah was; while Elijah 
might not have so well performed 
the more qniet duties which were 
performed by Elisha. The Israel- 
ites, though wicked and idolatrous 
in the days of Elisha, were not so 
bad as they were during the life of 
Elijah. The worship of Baal had 
been brought into Israel by Jezebel, 
from her own country; and, while 
Ahab lived, in consequence of her 
influence over him, it flourished and 
spread through the nation. But, 
when Jezebel had partly lost her 
influence at court, the worship of 
Baal was not so popular. After her 
death, it was forbidden. On this 
account, Elisha did not need so 



OF ELISHA. 191 

much boldness as Elijah needed in 
the time of Ahab. 

The pupils in the schools of the 
prophets respected both Elijah and 
Elisha. But I suppose that they 
regarded Elijah with the more reve- 
rence and awe, because there were 
such dignity and majesty in his 
character. They would consider 
Elisha as a very holy man, and a 
distinguished prophet; but I believe 
they would feel more at ease in his 
presence, than in the presence of 
Elijah. 

The manner in which Elijah de- 
parted from this world was sublime 
and mysterious, like his character 
and appearance while on earth. He 
did not resemble other men in his 



192 LIFE OF ELISHA. 

life, and he did not, like other men, 
die, but was taken up suddenly, in 
a flaming chariot, to heaven. Even 
after he left the world, the waters of 
Jordan were divided by Elisha with 
his mantle. 

Elisha's death was similar to his 
life. He died at home, surrounded 
by his friends. He was still the 
gentle and aifectionate prophet. One 
of his last acts was to foretell the 
deliverance of his countrymen from 
the Syrians. And even when he had 
long lain in the grave, God caused a 
miracle to be wrought by his dead 
body. 

THE END. 



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